LGH gets two new OB/GYNs

BY MARC LALONDE

marc.lalonde@transcontinental.ca

The Lakeshore General Hospital is in better shape to deliver babies after two new obstetrician/gynecologists were hired and the hospital invested in an ultrasound machine in order to better serve West Island moms-to-be, a West Island Health and Social Services Centre spokesman said Monday.

“This is very good news,” said West Island HSSC spokesman Louis-Pascal Cyr.

“There were quite a lot of things happening here. We lost a doctor, and at the same time, we wanted to build an efficient obstetrics department.”

Last year, popular longtime obstetrician Dr. John Bray resigned from the hospital over new scheduling issues that required him to be on call in the emergency room while on shift at the hospital.

“After that, we were down to three obstetricians, and we needed a better capacity of services,” Cyr said.

So the West Island HSSC found two new obstetricians: Dr. Yvonne Vasilie and Dr. Sandra Biem. At the same time, the hospital’s administration purchased a new ultrasound scanner and dedicated a new room to obstetric examination at the hospital.

The appointments and investments come at a time when the province’s birth rate is on the rise, making it timely, a doctor said.

“The increase in the birth rate all over Quebec since last year has resulted in more requests for pregnancy follow-ups,” West Island HSSC director of professional services Dr. Sylvie Douyon said.

Cyr said the hospital continues to work on establishing a perinatal ward, for which plans were announced in 2005.

HSSC chairman Sheila Laursen said demand remains high for obstetric services in the West Island, and the new investments will allow expectant West Island mothers to stay closer to home for deliveries.

“The West Island has the highest birth rates of all the 12 territories (in) Montreal. Unfortunately, over the recent past, a high proportion of women gave birth outside our territory due to a shortage of OB/GYNs. That’s... why the West Island HSSC wants to move quickly to respond to the increased demand,” she said.ߤ