Emergency services in northern Alberta village disrupted by lack of available doctors
CBC
A lack of available doctors and the inability to secure coverage are causing temporary disruptions at an emergency department in a northern Alberta village and surrounding communities over the Christmas holidays.
Residents in the village of Boyle, Alta., located in Athabasca County, approximately 163 kilometres north of Edmonton, will have to travel to surrounding communities for emergency medical services because Boyle Healthcare Centre Emergency Department is facing a shortage of doctors who can't work over the holidays.
The emergency department will be without a doctor from Dec. 23 to Dec. 26, as well as Dec. 28 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., according to a press release from Alberta Health Services on Friday.
Harold Nikipelo, an Athabasca County resident and former paramedic in Boyle, said shutting down emergency services is unacceptable.
The responsibility is on the AHS and the provincial government to make sure emergency departments are staffed with doctors at all times, he says.
"I think a big responsibility needs to come back to the physicians that made the commitment to provide these services," Nikipelo said in an interview Sunday.
"If you and I are planning on taking a holiday, we make sure that our jobs are covered or we don't plan our holiday."
In the meantime, AHS says nursing staff will be available to triage and assess patients in the emergency department. EMS services remain available to community members, and will transport patients to alternate emergency departments if the need arises.
The disruption from the lack of coverage for doctors isn't the first for Boyle residents.
Most recently, on Sept. 28., AHS announced due to a lack of physician availability and inability to secure locum (temporary substitute) coverage, the Boyle Healthcare Centre emergency department would be operating without doctors.
Warren Griffin, chief administrative officer for the village of Boyle, said the lack of doctors is going to affect people's decision on whether or not they need to go to the hospital.
"Hopefully, if people need medical help they'll get to the hospital or call 911, that's why we have an ambulance service," Griffin said.
"The system is strained and Boyle isn't the only location in Alberta that's experiencing these hardships."
In the statement, AHS says it continues to aggressively recruit healthcare workers for rural areas.
The province and district social services administration boards say plans are in place to ensure people on social assistance do not miss out on benefits as a result of the strike by Canada Post employees.
Near the exit to Truro, N.S., a cluster of colorful tents and a lone RV can be seen alongside Highway 102, some tucked under the overpass for shelter from the elements.
Police and Public Trust, a project of the CBC News Atlantic investigative unit, scrutinizes the largely off-limits police complaint and discipline systems across the region. Journalists are using access to information laws and, in some cases, court challenges to obtain discipline records and data.
Toronto police have arrested a GTA woman who they allege scammed dozens of Taylor Swift fans out of more than $70,000 by promising them tickets that never materialized.
Montreal was, in years past, considered a haven for renters. But those days are long gone.
WARNING: This story details violent events surrounding a fatal police shooting.
It took Gordon Frentz over 14 hours to drive through the snow from Grande Prairie, Alta., this past weekend to compete at this year's Canadian Western Agribition in Regina.
The coroner's inquest into the drug-related deaths of six men in custody at the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre will revisit 2018 recommendations relating to eight other inmate deaths to determine what's been done to implement them, the inquest's lawyer said Monday on the first day of hearings.
Emily Walstrom was expecting to lay her father to rest this month, but instead, she says his cremated remains are stuck in a Canada Post facility in B.C., delayed by the ongoing national postal strike.
A Friday night fire hasn't caused any impact to operations at the Dryden mill, the company said.
With around 55,000 Canada Post workers on strike since Nov.15 and no deal in sight, Toronto businesses say they're gearing up for a tough holiday season.