An overnight closure at Nakusp's emergency room left perspective patients with few options besides driving for hours to access care.
Around noon on July 31, Interior Health announced that the emergency department at the Arrow Lakes Hospital would be closed from 11 p.m. on July 31 to 7 a.m. on Aug. 1 due to limited nurse availability.
Interior Health advised patients to access care at Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital in Trail during the closure. With portions of Highway 6 closed due to wildfires, the trip would take about three hours and 15 minutes during daylight hours, longer in the dark.
But, the detour trip would also take you through Nelson, which has a hospital. It is unclear why IH advised patients to travel an extra hour to reach the Trail hospital.
Accessing emergency care in Revelstoke is not an option at night because the ferry that connects the Slocan Valley to the west does not run overnight.
IH did advise that people in the community needing life-threatening emergency care (chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) call 9-1-1 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.
The emergency department at the Arrow Lakes Hospital is normally open 24/7.
