Doctors leave Manitoba town, wounding ER service

Two doctors have left Killarney, forcing the Manitoba town to shut down its hospital's full-time emergency service.

Killarney now shares emergency services with Boissevain and one on-call doctor alternates between the two towns, which are about 40 kilometres apart.

Killarney's population is about 3,400 while Boissevain's is approximately 1,500.

People who now need an emergency room after hours must call 911 and "the ambulance will know which site the physician is on call at and take them directly there," Prairie Mountain Health Authority CEO Penny Gilson said.

If it's not an urgent matter, people must call the local health centre to find out where the doctor is working that day.

Killarney Coun. Gwen Tripp thinks alternating on-call locations is going to create a lot of confusion.

"I think [people] are going to be showing up at the hospital anyways and then they've wasted time that way [if the doctor is in the other town]," she said.

'Not a good situation'

"A small emergency's OK, but when it comes to heart and strokes time is of the essence. It's not a good situation really, for anybody," said Claire Bartley of Killarney, who had heart surgery on June 28.

He was short of breath and his doctor immediately began testing and found his heart had major blockages. Surgery was done to put five stents in his heart.

Bartley believes that had his doctor not acted so quickly, he might have had a heart attack.

"The current situation is not ideal [but] the most important thing is that we’re keeping as many services operational as close to home as possible," said Gilson, adding they're working hard to recruit rural doctors.

"Both facilities remain open, both facilities are completely staffed with nursing staff, it's just that there will not be a physician on-site in both communities."

Trip said Killarney and its surrounding region is too large to not have its own full-time emergency service, especially in summer because the population increases with people vacationing and camping in the area.

"We're 3,400 people and in the summer that doubles — and we cover a large area to the east," she said.

"For some people [the commute to Boissevain] could be more than 30 minutes, [and for others] it could be up to an hour."

She knows the Prairie Mountain Health Authority, as well as the provincial health minister, are focused on recruiting new doctors. She's also pitching in, personally calling doctors to see if any will commit to temporary placements.

"We all have got to work to get doctors to the rural communities and into Manitoba," Tripp said.