By NanaimoNewsNOW

doctor resigns

B.C. addictions doctor resigns, placed on leave over unsanctioned overdose sites

Feb 7, 2025 | 9:36 AM

A Vancouver Island doctor involved in setting up unsanctioned overdose prevention sites has resigned from her positions with Island Health, claiming she was placed on leave as punishment for her public advocacy work.

Dr. Jess Wilder, a co-founder of the group Doctors for Safer Drug Policy, said in a resignation letter dated Wednesday, Feb. 5 that she’s leaving her positions with Island Health “immediately.”

In a written statement on her resignation, Wilder said she was notified on Jan 22 she was being placed on administrative leave from her leadership roles.

“I was told this leave is pending investigation of alleged concerns surrounding my recent public advocacy work. At the time, they refused to provide concrete examples of their concerns when directly asked. Two weeks later, and there has been ongoing radio silence from AMSU leadership with regards to these concerns.”

Wilder resigned from her physician lead positions in harm reduction and education, and addiction medicine at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital (NRGH).

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Wilder said she will continue her clinical and patient-facing work.

She said the investigation is confidential and she directed questions to Dr. Ash Heaslip, with Island Health’s Addiction Medicine and Substance Use Program, and Dr. Randal Mason, the program’s regional medical director.

Doctors for Safer Drug Policy set up unauthorized overdose prevention sites at NRGH and at Royal Jubilee Hospital in Victoria in November 2024, in an effort to pressure the provincial government to act on what the group says is an “unfulfilled promise to address drug use in hospitals.”

The NRGH site continued sporadically over the next few months, with Wilder and other organizers saying they’ve seen “overwhelming” support from the Nanaimo community.

It was still offering services in January, while Wilder said they had received a “nationwide plea for support” from other communities interested in providing a similar service.

A statement from Island Health received on Thursday, Feb. 6, said while they don’t normally comment on “personnel matters or a person’s work history, in accordance with provincial privacy legislation. We can confirm we have received the resignation letters that the physicians have shared publicly.”

The statement goes on to say they did not place Dr. Wilder on administrative leave as a “punitive action”, but it was done to “ensure that individuals who are party to an investigation continue to be compensated while a fair investigation is underway.”

The statement said their policies support their staff’s ability to “advocate publicly while ensuring that personal positions are not confused with the position of Island Health and that private information remains confidential.”

It said their addictions medicine and substance use programs remain focused on providing the best possible care for patients and clients, and harm reduction is a key component of Island Health’s substance use system of care.

With files from Darryl Greer, The Canadian Press.