Interior Health president Susan Brown says service reductions caused by COVID-19 staff infections in rural communities are expected to last up to four weeks.

The health authority announced Tuesday that in Clearwater, Invermere and Lillooet. Overnight hours would also be reduced at health care centres in New Denver, Ashcroft and Barriere.

Brown said Wednesday the changes are being made to keep emergency rooms open due to staff sickness.

sa国际传媒淥ur goal is to ensure theresa国际传媒檚 sustainable access to care, and then if somebody needs admitting from those communities they would go to an alternative hospital.sa国际传媒�

Health minister Adrian Dix said Tuesday that across B.C. had required at least one sick day between Jan. 10 to 16.

Brown confirmed COVID-19 and the recent Omicron surge were the reasons for staff sickness, but wasnsa国际传媒檛 able to say how many Interior Health employees had been impacted.

The ones who are healthy, she said, are being redeployed where necessary. In Clearwater, for example, Brown said staff who work at the in-patient unit will shift over to assist the emergency room.

Interior Health has also begun rescheduling non-urgent elective surgeries that were to have taken place. Brown said approximately 2,800 surgeries will require rescheduling if the service reductions last four weeks.

sa国际传媒淲e know these are medically necessary procedures and we will do everything we can to get that service re-established quickly.sa国际传媒�

Brown stressed the changes are temporary, and are being done to ensure emergency rooms remain open.

sa国际传媒淚 think itsa国际传媒檚 really important that people know this decision wasnsa国际传媒檛 taken lightly. We know that rural healthcare is so important in the Interior and wesa国际传媒檒l do everything to get in-patient units opened up as quickly as possible.sa国际传媒�

READ MORE:

sa国际传媒�

sa国际传媒�

sa国际传媒�

| tyler.harper@nelsonstar.com
Like us on and follow us on .