Northern Health has not been able to secure physician coverage for the emergency room in Fort St. James, and the emergency room will be shut down for the remainder of June.
A Nurse Practitioner will be assisting with medical services on Fridays, alternating between the Fort St. James Medical Clinic and the Nak'azdli Health Centre.
The emergency room is the only part of the hospital impacted, with the Lab and X-ray departments still being operational and open for patient use.
The Fort St. James Medical Clinic remains open.
Hours of operation are Monday-Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Closed from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
Appointments can be booked by calling 250-996-8291.
- Only same day appointments will be booked.
Prescription refills are available on Wednesday’s from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at:
- The Fort St. James Medical Clinic
- Lakeside Pharmacy
Individuals who require emergency attention can call 9-1-1 for transport to the next open emergency department in Vanderhoof or Prince George, or can seek private transportation. Once patients are discharged from the emergency department, they will be required to find their own transport back to their home community.
Patients who aren’t sure whether their condition would warrant an emergency room visit, or who need health advice can call HealthLink BC (8-1-1), or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians, and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week.
Northern Health has said it continues to actively recruit both permanent and locum physicians to the community, and has been meeting and working with community representatives and the physicians on a short- and long-term solution.
Currently, Northern Health is working on a number of different campaigns to recruit doctors to Fort St. James including mail-out/phone/email campaign, setting up booths at physicians’ conferences, working on a website, and purchasing advertising in medical journals that physicians regularly read.
Another meeting was held the evening of May 15 with local community representatives and now Northern Health said they are working with the community to develop a not-for-profit-society proposal for the community to consider as an alternate model of delivery.