Northern Health says expanded services at a Smithers clinic will provide more options for patients without a primary care provider and alleviate pressure at the Bulkley Valley District Hospital emergency room.
The Smithers Primary Care Clinic on Third Avenue is now accepting bookings on Tuesday and Thursday evenings with plans to expand in the future, according to a press release.
“Local physicians will rotate through the evening clinics, which will help reduce the number of people seeking care at the Bulkley Valley District Hospital emergency department for non-urgent health-care needs,” the release stated.
Health minister Adrian Dix said the clinic — which is a collaboration between Northern Health, the Pacific Northwest Division of Family Practice, and Witset Health Centre, as well as the First Nations Health Authority and Doctors of BC — will provide “culturally safe primary care” and allow patients to become connected to a nurse practitioner or family physician for ongoing care.
“We are listening to people in B.C., and that is why we are creating clinics with nurse practitioners and family physicians to meet the daily health-care needs of a rapidly growing and aging population,” said Nathan Cullen, Stikine MLA.
Cullen credited and thanked the “collaborative work of the Association of Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC, Northern Health, Pacific Northwest Division of Family Practice, local Smithers and Houston medical staff, and our community partners for making this primary care clinic a reality.”
The province will provide $1.5 million a year for the service once it is fully operational.
The press release encourages residents of the Bulkley Valley who currently do not have a primary care provider to register on the Pacific NorthWest Division FETCH BC website FETCH Pacific Northwest (fetchbc.ca).
To book an appointment unattached patients are asked to call 250-877-7900 during the morning of the clinic days.
READ MORE: New walk-in medical clinic opens Oct. 17
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