A doctor in Nanaimo was suspended last week for using pen and paper in an ongoing protest against an electronic health record system that some physicians say puts patient safety at risk.

A group of eight doctors refuse to use the new iHealth system that Island Health rolled out in March 2016.

Dr. Paul Mitenko at Nanaimo’s Regional General Hospital said he was given a day suspension on Friday after he went against an order to use the system.

“This is a move that’s done in conscious by myself and my colleagues,” Mitenko said. “We’re looking to protect the safety of our patients.”

Island Health implemented the electronic system more than a year ago, but since then doctors say it’s been cumbersome and mired in errors.

“Dosages are changed, the order goes on for a couple days and disappears…sometimes it turns up on another patient,” Mitenko said. “We’re not unhappy with working with computers, some of us, even the ones born in the 19th century know what a computer is. But with that you have to say I want something that is safe and reliable.”

In February, the health authority said it would suspend the system’s order entry tool, but last month the decision was reversed.

In a statement Island Health said “CPOE is fundamentally interwoven with other key parts of the iHealth system and suspending it would significantly impact these functions and jeopardize the benefits realized by our patients.”

Dr. Dave Forrest suspects there will be more suspensions and says disciplinary action is being taken against some medical staff who refuse to use the system.

“It’s outrageous that physicians need to put their careers on the line in the interest of patient safety,” he said. “It’s unacceptable to us that Island Health has ignored for months the concerns raised by front line users.”

The health authority says it’s devising a plan that will support staff so that they feel confident in providing care.

For the time being, Mitenko says he will continue to use pen and paper even at the risk of another suspension.

With files from CTV Vancouver Island’s Jessica Lepp