Blind River emergency room temporary closure averted
A planned emergency room closure due to doctor shortage in Blind River on Friday has been avoided, the North Shore Health Network says.
CTV News reported the temporary closure announcement Wednesday and on Thursday morning, the health care group said in a news release the ER will remain open.
"NSHN would like to thank the community for your continued patience and understanding as we work with our partners towards sustainable resources to serve your healthcare needs," NSHN said.
It would have been the fifth closure in the last two weeks for the North Shore Health Network (NSHN), which consists of Blind River, Thessalon and Richard's Landing.
The Town of Blind River is nestled on Highway 17 in between Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury.
Patients in need of services would have been re-routed to either Thessalon -- 54 kilometres away -- or St. Joseph's General Hospital in Elliot Lake -- 57 kilometres away.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
"Look, nobody got into this line of work to not provide service for our communities. It's demoralizing as an administrator and I think it's doubly so for our clinic staff and the folks that really just want help and come to us in need," said NHSN CEO Tim Vine.
"Look, we need more, we need more physicians in the north. We've known that for a long time. I know NOSM increased its enrolment this year, but it's not enough."
The network recently was able to find coverage for its Thessalon site. That ER will resume operating Wednesday night as of 8 p.m.
"We need the policy levers at Queen's Park to start moving, especially around residency programs which is a bottleneck to providing more physicians into the system," Vine said.
The system is looking at an imbalance and what they need are more physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants along the North Shore and throughout the province of Ontario, he said.
CTV News also reached out to Blind River Mayor Sally Hagman, but didn't hear back before publication.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
'Tactical evacuations' underway near Fort Nelson, B.C., as wildfires encroach
The BC Wildfire Service says 'tactical evacuations' began Friday near Fort Nelson, B.C., due to an out-of-control wildfire that has grown rapidly since it was discovered earlier in the afternoon.
Snowbirds in Vancouver for puck-drop flyby as Canucks face Oilers
The Canadian Forces Snowbirds will be performing a flyover across downtown Vancouver at the start of tonight's Stanley Cup playoff game between the Canucks and the Edmonton Oilers.
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.