Fort Nelson hospital emergency department closes for morning

FORT NELSON, B.C. – Staffing challenges mean the Fort Nelson General Hospital’s emergency department has been closed during a portion of Saturday.

A Facebook post from Northern Health at 9:42 a.m. on December 27th said the emergency department will be closed during the morning.

It is scheduled to re-open around 2 p.m., according to the post.

This is the third hospital emergency closure in a matter of days, as both Chetwynd General Hospital and Fort St. John Hospital closed due to staffing challenges on Christmas Day, December 25th.

People in Fort Nelson in need of life-threatening emergency care, such as for chest pains, difficulty breathing, or severe bleeding, should call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility. 

Those without a family doctor or nurse practitioner who need a medical professional for non-urgent concerns are asked to contact the Northern Health Virtual Clinic at 1-844-645-7811 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.

Indigenous people and their family members living in B.C. with limited or no access to their own doctors are urged to make virtual appointments through the First Nations Virtual Doctor of the Day program, by calling 1-855-344-3800 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. any day of the week.

Those unsure if their situation would grant an emergency room visit are also encouraged to book a pharmacist through the province’s Book a Pharmacist website, call HealthLinkBC at 811 or access HealthLink’s website.