Community pushing back against overnight ER closure
Nathan Rhody has lost confidence in the South Bruce Grey Health Centre, now that two hospitals under their leadership have closed their Emergency Rooms from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m.
“This isn’t month three or six, this is month 27, and now they’re taking the services away from our neighbouring hospital in Walkerton, and further restricting our services in Chesley. It’s very, very concerning,” he says.
Rhody, a former South Bruce Grey Health Centre (SBGHC) board member, says the overnight closure of the Walkerton hospital’s emergency room last month, coupled with the overnight ER closure at the Chesley hospital that started in Sept. 2019, both due to nursing shortages, shows that the four-hospital network isn’t functioning properly.
“We have nearby health-care partners in Grey Bruce Health Services that run six hospitals and 24-hour emergency rooms at all of their locations, so other hospital networks seem to be making things work, yet SBGHC seems to be falling short,” says Rhody.
The president and CEO of the SBGHC says since the Walkerton and Chesley hospital cuts were announced, they’ve enacted a nursing retention and recruitment plan to hire more agency nurses, internationally trained nurses, casual nurses and to hire midwives to help out in Walkerton’s birthing centre.
“We’ve have good uptake with the agency nurses. We’ve had two start already and two more are starting this week and next. For internationally trained nurses, we’ve had a large number of applicants and will be interviewing those applicants over the next week," says Michael Barrett.
"And on the casual nurse front, we’re modifying the language in our collective agreement as we speak, and hope to be posting for those positions, shortly," he added.
The Municipality of Brockton, which encompasses Walkerton, has started a third-party review of the recent emergency room cuts.
A meeting is taking place this Saturday between community members, SBGHC leadership and MPPs Lisa Thompson and Bill Walker.
“The future of our hospital is very much in doubt,” says Rhody, now that Chesley no longer accepts inpatients, and only has a 12-hour emergency room.
Barrett says, “Our commitment is to four strong viable hospitals and at those four sites we want to have the full scope of services available prior to these reductions. Our intent, and we’ve attached urgency to this, is to make sure we get the Walkerton and Chesley hospital re-opened to full service.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Made-in-Newfoundland vodka claims top prize at worldwide competition
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.