Another rally was held in Tumbler Ridge over the weekend, a month after Northern health’s decision to reduce after-hours ER coverage.
South Peace MLA Larry Neufeld attended the rally. He said he was proud to see the people of Tumbler Ridge come together and show their strength.
“The fear was palpable around the community, as they’re losing what they perceive as a life-saving, incredibly necessary service in the community,” said Neufeld.
Rally organizer Chris Norbury said a community member died in an ambulance heading to a health-care facility outside the city while the Tumbler Ridge ER was closed.
He said it’s unacceptable for residents to live in a community without access to an emergency room.
Neufeld left the rally with over 1,850 signatures, which he will present to the Ministry of Health.
The petition reads, “Your petitioners respectfully request that the honorable House urge the government to ensure that 27/7 emergency services are restored and maintained at the Tumbler Ridge Health Centre, providing continuous emergency care to the residents of Tumbler Ridge and surrounding areas.”
Neufeld noted that the petition has more signatures than the combined voter turnout for both the provincial and federal previous elections.
“My expectation is that the ER will be restored in some manner that would be acceptable to the community,” said the MLA.
Neufeld added that the main solution currently being considered is the virtual emergency room rural assistance program, which offers virtual physicians to emergency departments in need of health-care workers.
Northern Health reduced on-call services on September 4, creating coverage gaps. Since the announcement, on-call services have only been available from 8 am to 9 am, and from 5 pm to 7 pm.
The community has actively expressed its concerns over the past month, calling for evening and weekends coverage to be restored.