File photo (image credit- CFJC Today)

By Michael Reeve

MERRITT ER CLOSED

Merritt Mayor Goetz calls for action after ER closure leads to emergency medical response at the front door

Jul 14, 2023 | 4:14 PM

MERRITT B.C. — “The premier needs to get involved at this point. The boss needs to step in and kind of shake things up a little bit and that’s what I’m wanting,” said Merritt Mayor Mike Goetz.

The Merritt ER was again closed during the night on Wednesday (July 12) following a fatal vehicle collision near Revelstoke, nearly 300 km away, that diverted a fill-in nurse away from Merritt. The resulting closure in Merritt almost cost another life, right out front of the hospital, as the fire department was called to the doorstep for a possible cardiac incident.

“This is why we have to do what we do, this is why. Because had that person lost their life on the doorstep or on the ambulance (to Kamloops), this has to be a wake-up call. This is why I’m so upset about this. This is what we knew was going to happen. It has to be addressed, it has to be fixed,” Goetz told CFJC News.

The patient was transported to Kamloops for care.

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While the situation in Merritt had recently improved, and the mayor isn’t ready to throw away the positive steps, he’s demanding action and accountability in Victoria.

“I need some action, I need some concrete action and some concrete sense. Maybe it’s to the point where we need to have a fresh set of eyes in that ministry that can see things a different way. Centralization is a bad situation, it doesn’t work well, it hasn’t worked well for health, for forestry, for mental health, for anything. Centralization is not a good model,” stated Goetz.

Goetz stopped short of calling for the resignation of Minister Adrian Dix, however saying if he did his job as poorly he would have been fired. BC United health critic Shirley Bond didn’t pull that same punch.

“Having news conferences and standing up and talking about the progress that has supposedly been made is cold comfort and showing up at an emergency room in Merritt or other communities to find it closed. That rests solely on the shoulders of this minister, this government and it certainly is time for a change,” said Bond.

Bond was quick to thank healthcare workers across the province who are burning out due to staffing challenges, stating the issues lie with the government.

“We see a healthcare system where healthcare professionals are unbelievably burnt out and feeling underappreciated,” said Bond. “We need this government to acknowledge that there is a crisis, to step up and support communities like Merritt and many others, who continue to face those ER closures that can literally be a life or death situation.”

Goetz finished by reiterating his stance that B.C. needs to lift the COVID-19 vaccine mandate and hire back the 900 Interior Health workers and promising to keep fighting.

“We have to keep fighting, if we don’t keep fighting we just become a number and a statistic. So, I will continue to fight, I will continue to complain, and I will continue to write letters because we need this fixed. My message to the premier was to do something, and I signed it I am P.O.’d and I am, I’m P.O.’d. Every time this happens I feel like I’m letting my community down.”

CFJC reached out to Minister Adrian Dix for comment. He was not made available ahead of our deadline.