Chetwynd Hospital impacted by diversion for fourth consecutive weekend

CHETWYND, B.C. — Chetwynd Hospital’s emergency department faced another weekend diversion last Friday, with services unavailable until 7 a.m. on Saturday, May 11th. 

It is the fourth consecutive weekend in a row that the emergency department has been unavailable. 

Northern Health announced in a Facebook post that the services were unavailable due to “challenges with nursing staff coverage.”

The interruption comes just two days after the hospital’s last diversion, which started on May 4th and lasted five consecutive nights. 

During hospital diversions, the health authority said people in the Chetwynd area who need life-threatening emergency care should call 9-1-1 to the nearest available and appropriate facility. Patients requiring urgent care will be transported to the hospital in Dawson Creek, over an hour from Chetwynd.

In an interview on May 7th, Peace River South MLA Mike Bernier called the diversions “horrifying.”

The South Peace Division of Family Care, a group of healthcare workers from Dawson Creek, Chetwynd and Tumbler Ridge, says it’s working to recruit and hire more doctors and nurses for the area.

The organization is also planning to turn Dawson Creek’s Ejen Healthcare Clinic into a “primary care hub” for the entire South Peace region, and it’s working alongside Northern Health to make it happen.