Port Hardy Hospital’s emergency department will be temporarily closed until 7 p.m. Tuesday due to limited staff availability, says Island Health.
All other inpatient services will continue as normal at the hospital.
Temporary weekend closures at both Port Hardy and Port McNeill hospitals have occurred since the spring but have recently increased.
The latest closure comes on the heels of the closure of Port McNeill Hospital’s ER from Friday to Sunday due to limited staffing.
The closure also follows a resolution to take urgent steps to keep ERs open 24 hours a day across B.C. passed at the Union of B.C. Municipalities annual convention in Whistler last week.
Municipal leaders called on the province to increase funding and training opportunities for health-care professionals to “ensure appropriate and necessary” levels of care.
Island physicians have also been asking Island health for a more timely way of notifying the community of the closures and putting in place a strategy to better co-ordinate and share human resources. A task force was formed over the summer.
Port McNeill family physician Dr. Prean Armogam has been especially vocal in asking the health authority for predictable closures or capacity planning.
“We remain in crisis with the health authority not being responsible in managing available resources or timely messaging to the public regarding hospital closures,” said Armogam on Tuesday. “Gambling with people’s lives has to stop.”
The task force comprising physicians and Island Health representatives gives the appearance of inclusiveness but there’s been no meaningful engagement or support of frontline staff, he said. “The time for a responsible decision is now.”
In an Aug. 19 memo to the Doctors of B.C. obtained by the Times Colonist, physicians expressed their urgent concerns.
The Mount Waddington region — Alert Bay, Port Alice, Port Hardy and Port McNeill — “has been in an evolving state of crisis since March 2020,” wrote Helen Truran, the Vancouver Island representative for the Rural and Remote Divisions of Family Practice.
“They are very concerned about the level of service they can provide and are seeking organized closures of the emergency [department] with diversions to Port McNeill to ensure patient safety and prevent further physician burn-out,” said Truran.
In a memo two days earlier, Port Hardy family doctor Shannon Wong told Island Health officials that ideally, there should be seven doctors for Port Hardy, but only two will be working in the primary care clinic as of September.
Island Health acknowledged Tuesday the temporary closure is not an ideal situation for the community “and we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience experienced by this temporary service interruption.”
Anyone experiencing a medical emergency in the Port Hardy area is advised to call 911 or, if possible, proceed to Port McNeill Hospital Emergency Department.
Island Health said the health authority and B.C. Emergency Health Services have protocols in place to ensure patients who call 911 are transported to the appropriate site.
Those unsure whether their condition requires a visit to an emergency department can seek advice from a registered nurse available toll free any time of the day or night by calling HealthLink BC at 811.
