The Chesley Hospital will soon be returning to 24/7 operating hours in the emergency department.
The South Bruce Grey Health Centre says in a release that as of June 15th, the board has approved the resumption of 24 hour service at the Chesley Emergency Department. The release states “since reopening the Walkerton ED to 24-hour service, and returning the 8 acute beds to the Chesley inpatient unit on May 8th, the stability of staffing has been monitored closely, and modelling for staffing requirements over the summer months has continued. This assessment has confirmed that with the continued dedication and support of SBGHC’s staff, the use of agency nurses, casual nurses, externs, and registered mid-wives, a recommendation could be provided to the SBGHC Board to proceed with reopening of 24- hour service.”
However, the SBGHC states that fully reopening the Walkerton and Chesley emergency departments remains risky due to the future potential of staffing shortages and a reduction in service that could come at short notice.
“We are very pleased that we can again provide 24/7 service across all four sites of SBGHC, and meet the expectations of the communities we serve for around-the-clock service,” says Michael Barrett, SBGHC President & CEO. “We will continue to take the necessary steps, and work closely with our nurses and physicians, to ensure that every effort is made to provide the necessary coverage to keep our Emergency Departments open.”
“I am very pleased that we will again be providing 24/7 service to all our communities,” adds Bill Heikkila, SBGHC Board Chair. “The same non-negotiables that resulted in the Board’s decision to reduce services in September 2019 and again in December 2021 are still at play. We will not provide care in a manner that is unsafe, and we will not provide care that further deteriorates our staff. On behalf of our Board, and our communities, I want to thank our dedicated team of staff and physicians for making the resumption of services across all of our sites possible.”
