Over the next week, health centers will have temporarily shorter hours and virtual emergency rooms
Due to a lack of staff, the emergency rooms of several health centers in central Newfoundland will be closed for the next week.
Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services sent out six press releases Thursday night to tell the public about the closures and say that the lack of staff is only temporary.
The emergency room at Lewisporte Health Centre will close at 8 a.m. on Tuesday and reopen at the same time the next day. But it will shut down again on Thursday at 8 a.m. and reopen the next day at the same time.
The Buchans A.M. Guy Memorial Health Centre’s emergency room will be closed from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday.
The Dr. Y.K. Jeon Kittiwake Health Centre in New-Wes-Valley is closed until Tuesday. From 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on that day, a virtual emergency room will be available. The ER will also be closed on Wednesday. On Thursday, from 4 to 10 p.m., a virtual ER will be available.
The press release says that a “virtual ER” means that people can go to the ER, where there will be doctors and nurses. By video, you will also be able to talk to a doctor or nurse practitioner.
The ER at the Connaigre Peninsula Health Centre in Harbour Breton will be closed until Tuesday at 4 p.m., when a virtual ER will be open until 10 p.m. It will be closed on Wednesday, but it will be open again Thursday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. for virtual ER.
The Baie Verte Peninsula Health Centre will close at 8 a.m. on Sunday, reopen at 8 a.m. on Monday, and stay open until 8 a.m. on Thursday.
- Says the PC Opposition, health care promises are short on details, like where the staff will come from.
- Even though N.L. is trying to hire more family doctors, the shortage is getting worse.
The emergency room at the Fogo Island Health Centre will be open on the weekend, and on Tuesday, it will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. It will be closed on Wednesday and will reopen at 8 a.m. on Thursday.
People who need urgent care when their local ER is closed are being told by N.L. Health Services to call 911 or go to the nearest ER, which would be the Central Newfoundland Regional Health Centre in Grand Falls-Windsor or the James Paton Memorial Regional Health Centre in Gander.
Newfoundland and Labrador is having trouble finding enough people to work in health care, so these places are closing. The Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association estimated in February that 136,000 people in the province do not have a family doctor.Because of this, people often go to ERs to get help.
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