Tumbler Ridge Health Centre closes early due to ‘staffing challenges’

TUMBLER RIDGE, B.C. — Tumbler Ridge Health Centre’s daytime emergency department was closed early Friday afternoon.

Northern Health announced the shuttering in a Facebook post at 3 p.m. on December 5th, citing “staffing challenges” as the reason. 

This is the first closure at the Tumbler Ridge Health Centre since mid-October, when the centre’s emergency department closed for the entire day.

The closure began at 4 p.m. today and will last until 7 p.m. The closure did not affect other services – including primary care – at the health centre.

The centre’s regular hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with on-call hours scheduled from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Monday to Friday.

The post urges residents in the area to “always call 9-1-1 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility,” in the case of those who need life-threatening emergency care, such with as chest pains, difficulty breathing or severe bleeding.

Patients looking for medical care in non-urgent situations and who do not have a family doctor can make an appointment with the Northern Health Virtual Clinic at 1-844-645-7811, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

Indigenous patients seeking a doctor can access the First Nations Virtual Doctor of the Day program, which enables Indigenous people and their family members living in B.C. with limited or no access to their own doctors to make virtual appointments, by calling 1-855-344-3800, seven days per week between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Northern B.C. residents can also book an appointment to see a pharmacist for 21 minor ailments and prescription contraceptives by accessing the ‘book a pharmacist’ website.