Moosomin physician worried about impact: Emergency services suspended at Kipling
October 6, 2012, 11:07 am
Kevin Weedmark
The Sun Country Health Region has decided to suspend emergency services at Kipling Hospital, over the objections of a local doctor who says he can maintain the service.
Dr. Johan Steyn is currently the only physician in Kipling, and the health region decided to close the emergency room because of the lack of a second doctor.
"We got a letter saying we have to reroute patients to Broadview, Regina, or Moosomin," said Jonandi Johnston, Dr. Steyn's daughter who works with him in his office.
"They claim the doctor they have in town is not good enough to run the hospital. Dr. Steyn is my dad, and we were beyond mad that he was not included in any decisions. People are pretty upset with all this in Kipling.
"Dr. Steyn, has been in Kipling for years. There were doctors coming and going, but he has been the only doctor steady there for the last 10 years.
"There was another doctor there, but my dad had most of the patients."
Johnston said there has been little information forthcoming from Sun Country.
"We don't know what is going on," she said. "They say they are temporarily shutting down the emergency room, my dad has had to transfer patients. We have no idea what they're thinking for the long term. The community is upset.
"He would like to stay there for his community, but he doesn't know what to do with no hospital."
Dr. Michael Plewes said he is upset that the Sun Country Health Region is closing another facility and relying on Moosomin doctors to take on an additional load.
He said he was upset that Sun Country was telling Kipling area patients to go to Moosomin for treatment without consulting or even informing the Moosomin doctors. "They've closed Redvers and now Kipling, and they're relying on us to take care of the patients, but we don't even get the courtesy of a phone call," Plewes said.
Johnston questioned the health region's plan to close the hospital because of the single doctor.
"Why can't it stay open? When there has been another doctor, they're not always around. Dr. Steyn was the only doctor for a year and they kept it open.
"They say one doctor can't handle it because he will get run down. Would it be better to have two or more, yes, but how can you have three doctors if one is not good enough to run the hospital after 10 years? Why don't they ask the doctor? I think he would know if he needs a break."
Johnston also questioned how hard the Sun Country Health Region has been looking for a doctor for Kipling.
"They claim they can't get doctors for Kipling, but in the past two months, interim doctors have been coming down to Weyburn, why can't the interim doctors come to Kipling? They seem to not care about the smaller places."
Evelyn Szakacs of Kipling said she is worried about the closure of the hospital
"I rely on the hospital," she said. "A lot of people rely on it. It's a very large area. If they close that down, I don't know where people can go because they come to Kipling from many miles around. There are always people lined up to see the doctor so it's a very large area."
Szakacs, one of Dr. Steyn's patients, says she doesn't understand why the hospital can't remain open with one doctor admitting patients.
"I wish that they would allow him to keep the hospital open," she said. "He's willing to do it and he's done it before. He has a lot of patients and he's willing to keep going, but they're shutting the hospital down.
"He's a good doctor, and he saved many lives. He saved my brother's life. He had heart trouble, gave him a pacemaker so he's doing okay now. He's the best doctor that we ever had or that we've ever known of. He doesn't fool around. He's very thorough."
Natasha Waynert of Inchkeith has used the services of the Kipling hospital in the past and doesn't like the idea of it being closed.
"It's very important to the community-it's the only hospital for quite a few small towns," she said. "All the other hosptials around are so full that I don't know what they're going to do without Kipling.
"I had to use the hospital last year-I had a rash all over my body. A hospital is a very important service for a town like Kipling. "I think Dr. Steyn could use reinforcements-it would be nice to have another doctor-but I think in the course of waiting, he could handle it."
