Prince George surgeon, Dr. David Nelson (centre), with members of the GR Baker Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, and Quesnel Scandinavian Society

photo courtesy Northern Health

Quesnel, BC – Residents living in Quesnel will no longer need to travel to Prince George to see a surgeon for minor knee procedures, and the surgeon performing the local procedures hopes to slowly expand his offerings thanks to what started as a $50-thousand dollar donation from the community’s Scandinavian Society.

The Hospital Auxiliary at GR Baker Memorial Hospital added another $100-thousand to the donation to purchase arthroscopy equipment that allowed Prince George-based surgeon, Dr. David Nelson, to perform his first procedure on June 7th. (photo at right shows one of four scopes purchased courtesy NH)

Quesnel Health Service Administrator, Margaret Sadlon, says, "We’re really excited about this because it’s a brand new service for Quesnel."  Until last month, Quesnel residents have had to travel to Prince George for both their consultations and, then, the procedures.  While there’s no data yet on what this means for wait times for these minor procedures, Sadlon says she has heard from people who have had to wait months to get into the orthopedic surgeons in Prince George. 

"So this is also takes a little bit of that load away from Prince George, so everybody wins," she says.  "We’re really happy and, as a result, you know the old adage, ‘If you build it, they will come’?  Well, ‘If you buy it, they will come’ is the case here.  We have another orthopedic surgeon in Prince George who has also expressed an interest in coming down and providing services."

Sadlon says Dr. Nelson has a great system in place during his monthly visit to Quesnel: he does his surgical procedures in the morning, then sees his consults in the afternoon, and, by that time, his surgical patients have recovered from anaesthesia, so he can check in with them before they go home.

The Health Services Administrator says the nurses working with Dr. Nelson at GR Baker were sent for special training, so they were prepared for the new services as well.  At left, OR Resource Nurse, Joanne George, shows the new equipment to members of both the Scandinavian Society and Hospital Auxiliary during a special reception last week. (photo courtesy NH)

Sadlon says "(Dr. Nelson told those attending last week’s reception) as he builds up his practise down here, he expects to do some ligament repairs and, perhaps, some shoulders."