The South Bruce Grey Health Centre facility at Chesley. (supplied image)
The emergency department at the Chesley Hospital will no longer operate past 5 p.m. daily.
South Bruce Grey Health Centre issued a release to say a critical shortage of nurses is forcing the reduction in service at its Chesley site indefinitely.
The Chesley Hospital’s emergency department will only be open and operational from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
An effort by South Bruce Grey Health Centre to resume 24/7 emergency department service at the Chesley Hospital didn’t last long.
It had only been operating 24/7 since June 15, after having an extended overnight closure in effect since September 2019.
There were also sproadic overnight closures of the Chesley Hospital’s emergency department throughout the summer, mostly on weekends.
“Although our team of incredible nurses has made a significant effort to try and fill as many vacant shifts as possible, and our leaders have dedicated a large majority of their time to stabilizing nursing staff levels within our organization, including working some shifts, the reality is that there just are not enough nurses in the system to continue providing the level of service that has been provided to date,” says South Bruce Grey Health Centre president and CEO Michael Barrett. “This is certainly not the decision we wanted to make, but we will only operate if we can provide safe care to the patients we serve.”
Meanwhile, a release from South Bruce Grey Health Centre goes on to say even with the nightly closures of the Chesley Hospital’s emergency department the organization will be challenged to keep other services fully operational moving through the fall due to staffing shortages.
“The situation will be monitored closely, and further reductions, including potential 24-hour weekend closures, may be required,” the release from the hospital organization says.