BY ANDY BLATCHFORD

andy.blatchford@transcontinental.ca

An anesthesiologist shortage forced the Lakeshore General Hospital (LGH) to begin scheduling night surgeries two weeks ago, a move that could keep on-call staff working as late as midnight to meet the demands of its operating rooms.

Following the retirement of an anesthesiologist in December, the LGH’s anesthesiology team was reduced to one part-time and three full-time employees, according to the hospital.

“It is a temporary solution and we’re working very hard to recruit at least another anesthesiologist,” LGH spokesman Louis-Pascal Cyr said of the night shifts. “We were trying to recruit but there’s a shortage of anesthesiologist in Quebec, so it’s hard for a lot of institutions.”

Currently, the Pointe Claire hospital runs two of its six operating rooms on Mondays and Tuesdays and three rooms from Wednesday through Friday, he said.

Operating-room staff members, such as surgeons and nurses, have also been asked to work late, he added.

But after two weeks, the late nights are already beginning to wear on the small group of anesthesiologists, according to a hospital employee who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The medical specialists are working more than 100 hours a week and will have difficulty maintaining the night shifts for a prolonged period, the source said.

Dr. Pierre Fiset, president of the Association of Anesthesiologists of Quebec (AAQ), acknowledged the province-wide shortage, but said the LGH’s position is more “precarious” than most.

“The situation is not ideal elsewhere, but Lakeshore is currently, acutely missing anesthesiologists,” he told The Chronicle Monday.

Quebec anesthesiologists earn the second-lowest salary in any province, according to a report published in the January/February issue of Santé Inc. With an average annual income of $172,000, they rank below the Canadian average of $249,000.

Fiset said the lower wages have compelled young graduates to look out of province for work.

“It’s been a matter of our government not being sensitive to the fact that they need to be competitive,” he said. “There’s been years of dragging (to increase) the salaries for doctors.”

He said the AAQ negotiated a new deal with Quebec, which runs to 2010, but predicts a “few difficult years ahead before all the spots are filled.”

On Monday, West Island Health and Social Services Centre (WIHSSC) executive director Suzanne Turmel said the institution has considered bringing in anesthesiologists from overseas, a move opposed by the AAQ.

“I think that we have not explored all the possibilities for giving those positions to Quebec or McGill (University) graduates,” he said. “I find it very bizarre that a hospital in the middle of the island of Montreal, in one of the most affluent and prosperous areas of the city, can not fill spots for medical specialists.”

But Turmel said a hiring moratorium across the island of Montreal has made the search for new specialists — to fill at least one of three vacant anesthesiologist

positions — a challenge.

The hospital asked Quebec to be exempt from the hiring freeze and are waiting for a response, however, an exception hasn’t been granted in more than four years, she said. Some institutions face more “acute” shortages than the LGH and would be considered first, she added.

“Short term, we’ll need another anesthesiologist because our doctors are going to be tired,” Turmel said.

Jacques Cartier MNA Geoff Kelley said Quebec is aware of the LGH’s need, but the hospital is not alone.

“What may make finding a solution harder is we’re not the only hospital who’s in difficult circumstances,” he said Monday morning.

The province is training more specialists, such as anesthesiologists, and trying to lure foreign doctors, he added.

“It’s a very important issue,” Kelley said. “It has important consequences for the emergency room (and) for birthing because of Caesarean (sections).”