Yukon gov't commits, again, to 2 long-term care beds at Watson Lake hospital

Yukon's health minister says a plan to have two long-term care beds available at the Watson Lake Hospital is back on track.

That's after the plan was put on hold late last year.

Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee now says the government is committed to moving forward with the project, though she did not provide any details about the timeline.

"Most recently in the legislative assembly I indicated that we would be pursuing the long-term care beds in Watson Lake," McPhee said. "We hope the community of Watson Lake would support such an option."

McPhee said the decision last winter to put the plan on hold was made after consulting with the municipality and hearing that it wasn't what the town wanted to pursue — though the town's mayor has since said that's not exactly true. 

Staffing issues were another reason the project was halted last year, according to the minister.

Those reasons didn't seem to prevent the project from moving ahead this time.

"We will continue with the work being done to renovate some hospital rooms that have been identified for the purposes of this project," McPhee said.

"We hope that we will be able to pursue hiring the staff that will be necessary ... to provide the service through the long-term care pilot project.

"I look forward to that becoming a reality."

McPhee said having long-term care beds available at the Watson Lake Hospital will provide another level of care to what is already being offered in the community through home care.

McPhee said her office is planning a scheduled visit to Watson Lake to speak with residents about the long-term care needs, and what the government will do about them.

Watson Lake resident Isabel Welsh has been an advocate for long-term care in the community for a while now. Her 22-year-old granddaughter Jennifer requires round-the-clock care.

When Welsh first heard that the hospital would have two long-term care beds available to local residents, she was excited. When she later learned the plan was put on hold, the excitement turned into a feeling of defeat.