UPDATE 5:45 p.m Interior Health is responding to elected officials in Boundary about the rumored closure of the emergency department at the hospital in Grand Forks. “Interior Health has no plans to permanently close the emergency department at Boundary District Hospital in Grand Forks,” said Lannon De Best, executive director of clinical operations for Kootenay Boundary. “The hospital is an important resource for the Boundary region and we are continuing our recruitment efforts to bring more health workers to the region.” ORIGINAL 4:15 p.m Elected officials in Grand Forks are calling on the province to step in and stop the possible closing of the city’s emergency room. As rumors swirl the emergency room at Boundary Regional Hospital in Grand Forks may close, Kootenay Boundary Regional District officials met Wednesday to discuss the issue. “We are extremely concerned about patients having to travel over Paulson Pass to Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital in Trail or the two and a half hours to Kelowna to receive emergency care,” said Precinct C manager Grace McGregor. in a press release. “We are putting immediate pressure on the province of BC to address this threat to our facilities and the impact it could have on residents.” Reports have surfaced that an 82-year-old man with a broken hip had to wait nearly 60 hours for an ambulance to take him from a hospital in Grand Forks to Trail for surgery. The hospital in Grand Forks has a catchment area of over 9,000 people. Its hospital beds have been closed since March due to a lack of nursing staff, officials said. “The committee thanks Everett Baker, Mayor of Grand Forks, for his tremendous ongoing efforts to support the health care needs of his community,” McGregor added. “The whole Boundary region is joining him in this fight to keep our ER.” Castanet has reached out to Interior Health for comment.
