Interior Health makes temporary cuts in rural locations due to staffing shortage

Photo: BC Gov Flickr

Omicron-related staffing challenges have forced Interior Health to make a number of temporary service cuts, as healthcare workers call in sick at unprecedented rates.

The health authority announced Tuesday it is closing inpatient services in Clearwater, Invermere, and Lillooet to stabilize emergency departments in those communities.

Overnight hours at the Ashcroft Community Health Centre and the Slocan Community Health Centre in New Denver are being reduced in an effort to stabilize daytime services.

The Barriere and District Health Centre is being closed to redeploy staff to nearby emergency departments.

More non-urgent surgeries are being rescheduled and other general temporary cuts are being made across the region.

“We are determined to get services up and back and running in full as soon as possible,” said Health Minster Adrian Dix on Tuesday.

There are currently 854 COVID-positive patients in hospital in B.C., 112 of whom are in the ICU. In the Interior Health region there are 90 people in hospital and 13 in critical care.

The province’s 9,229 base hospital beds are operating at 95.1 per cent of capacity. The 2,333 surge beds added for the pandemic are at 24.2 per cent of capacity. Those figures are related to all types of hospitalizations.

Dix noted that the system is typically operating at over 100 per cent at this time of year.

He said the service reductions are being driven by a wave of healthcare workers calling in sick.

From Jan. 10 to Jan. 16, a total of 17,958 B.C. healthcare workers called in sick for all illnesses combined. 3,069 of those sick calls were placed in Interior Health.

From Jan. 3 to Jan. 9, the province saw 19,776 healthcare workers call in sick. Dix said sick calls at the same time last year were just over 8,000.

Between Jan. 9 and Jan. 15, 791 non-urgent surgeries were postponed in B.C., 240 of which were in Interior Health. That is, however, far short of the 3,000 surgeries canceled per week in April/May 2020.

“Interior Health is facing in some ways the most significant challenges, not just because of significant COVID-19 rates because of the incredible challenges that the health authority has faced over the last number of months including, as everyone knows the heat dome, fire, firefighter wildfires and floods and other conditions,” Dix said.

Interior Health says it is reaching out to local leaders and partners to answer questions about the next few weeks. Service updates will be posted here.

“People living across the Interior region overcame exceptional challenges last year. I would like to thank each and every person working in health care for their selfless determination as we get through this crisis together,” said Interior Health CEO Susan Brown.