Nicola Valley Hospital’s emergency department temporarily closes once again shortly after reopening

MERRITT, B.C. — Less than 24 hours after it reopened, the emergency department at Nicola Valley Hospital in Merritt will be temporarily closed.

In a news release Tuesday (Oct. 10) morning, Interior Health says the closure from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday due to “unexpected limited staffing availability.”

During this time, all other inpatient services will continue as Nicola Valley Hospital, but residents in Merritt and area in need of emergency care will be redirected to Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops.

It’s the 16^th time in 2023 that the emergency department in Merritt has closed due to a lack of available staff and the first since the Thanksgiving long weekend.