Emergency room in B.C. Interior closing again, this time for 5 nights in a row
For months, the district of Clearwater, B.C. has endured sporadic overnight closures of the emergency room at its local hospital. This week, the closures are growing more consistent.
Beginning Wednesday, the emergency department at Dr. Helmcken Memorial Hospital will be closed from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. for five straight nights because of "limited staffing availability," according to Interior Health.
A statement from the health authority, posted on social media by the district's mayor, indicates that the emergency department is scheduled to resume 24-hour service at 7 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 8.
During the closures, patients requiring emergency care are diverted to either Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops or 100 Mile House District General Hospital, both more than 100 kilometres away.
Rural health-care centres across the province have been suffering unexpected closures and hours reductions as the twin crises of the COVID-19 pandemic and record numbers of toxic drug overdoses strain B.C.'s health-care system.
Earlier this year, a poll from the Hospital Employees Union suggested one in three B.C. health-care workers are likely to leave the profession in the next two years due to stress and burnout.
Premier John Horgan was asked about the situation again Wednesday, and maintained that all of Canada has been experiencing shortages of health-care workers, emergency room closures, and lack of access to primary care.
He repeated his call for more funding from the federal government. Horgan and other premiers say Ottawa used to be a 50/50 partner in funding health care, but now only provides about one-fifth of the cost of the provincially delivered service.
"This is not a B.C. problem. It's a national problem," Horgan said. "Families concerned about being able to access primary care is a real and pressing problem, and we're doing everything we can to address it. But it needs to be across the country, not just across the community."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.