The summer promises to be difficult in hospitals and CHSLDs in the Eastern Townships. The labor shortage and the vacations force the CIUSSS de l’Estrie-CHUS to set up contingency plans for many that are far from pleasing to everyone.
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In Coaticook, Mayor Simon Madore learned Monday that his hospital emergency room would be closed between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. From yesterday and until August 16, its citizens will therefore have to travel more than 40 kilometers if they want to see an emergency doctor.
If Coaticook gets hit, it is because at night, its emergency room would be the least busy on the network.
A situation denounced by Mr. Madore. All the more so with the tourist attraction Foresta Lumina, the population sometimes doubles in summer.
“Our tourism begins in the dark and ends in the early hours of the morning and I am closed during those hours. Has it been evaluated to shut me down between noon and 5 a.m. or less busy hours than at night? ”
To reassure the population and to react in the event of a “vital emergency”, an ambulance will be parked in the emergency parking lot in the evenings and nights.
But barring major problems and because the pressure is also being felt on the paramedics, they strongly suggest that the population go directly to another emergency in Sherbrooke or Magog.
“Go to other resources,” asks the communications coordinator at Dessercom Francis Brisebois. “There are several in our vast health network. I am thinking in particular of pharmacists who can answer your questions. 8-1-1 is also available to everyone who calls. ”
The situation has reached such a critical point that it makes the member for solidarity for Sherbrooke, Christine Labrie, say that it is time for the Minister of Health to act.
“The CIUSSS cannot work miracles on its own. What it takes are incentives, especially financial, to attract more people to the network. We must also stimulate volunteering to offer more hours. ”
The mayor of Coaticook would also appreciate better listening from the CIUSSS.
“When we can talk together, we can find solutions together. When it’s one-sided, we stick our noses together and we have what we have. “
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