Nurses Rally puts pressure on Provincial Government to respond to health crisis in Merritt

MERRITT –There was a Nurses Rally yesterday in Merritt from noon to 1 p.m. The rally took place behind the Nicola Valley Hospital at the Community Gardens.

The protest is the result of a shuttered emergency department and weekly service disruptions and ongoing patient diversions.

Last year the Nicola Valley Hospital in Merritt’s emergency room was closed 17 times due to staffing shortages. This year the hospital’s emergency department has been dut down twice already.

BC United MLA for Fraser-Nicola, Jackie Tegart was at the B.C. Nurses Union’s rally calling for a staff contingency plan and safer working conditions at Merritt’s Nicola Valley Hospital.

“For too long, the cries for help from nurses and the Merritt community have been met with inaction by the NDP, leading to an escalating health care crisis,” said Tegart.

“With the emergency room shut down 20 times last year and twice already this year, it is imperative that David Eby acts now to stem this crisis and restore reliable medical services in the community.”

Nicola Valley Hospital / Pattison Media

The Merritt emergency department closed a total of 20 times, forcing patients to drive long distances to access urgent care.

A drive to Kamloops Royal Inland Hospital is 45-60 minute away. Depending on the severity of the situation a wait time like that could be fatal when you add on the amount of time they would be treated in Kamloops.

With an aging population in Merritt the situation becomes even more dire, with nurses needing better working conditions in order to live and work here.

“It’s the employer’s duty to ensure a safe workplace,” says BCNU President Adriane Gear. “Despite nurses repeated asks for security at this facility, nothing has been done. This, as they work 16-hour-plus shifts to keep the ER doors open because of the staffing challenges they continue to deal with.”

CFJC file photo

Nurses say a lack of long-term care facilities has also put pressure on the hospital’s ER,

Gear says there’s no action plan in place to effectively keep the nurses who currently work at the hospital and recruit other nurses to the community.

“Nurses don’t want to see patients suffer any longer. The people of Merritt deserve better health care,” she says.

The fight for justice for Merrittonians goes on as local’s lives continue to be toyed with.