April 16, 2024
DRAYTON VALLEY — The Drayton Valley Hospital and Care Centre Emergency Department (ED) will be temporarily without physician coverage from 4 p.m. on Tuesday, April 16 until 8 a.m. on Wednesday, April 17.
Efforts to secure temporary locum coverage for this period have been unsuccessful.
As a result, the ED will temporarily close beginning at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, April 16, to allow for any patients in the department to be treated and discharged while a physician is available. The ED will resume normal operations at 8 a.m. Wednesday.
During this temporary closure nursing staff will remain on-site in the ED to assess any patients who may present to the site, and to redirect them to alternate care options depending on their individual needs.
EMS will be available to transport patients to alternative facilities as needed, including to the Devon General Hospital, Rimbey Hospital and Care Centre, Leduc Community Hospital, and Westview Health Centre in Stony Plain.
There will be no impact to other services at the site during the temporary ED closure.
Residents are asked to call 911 if they have a medical emergency and are reminded to call Health Link at 811, which is available 24/7 for non-emergency health-related questions. Individuals requiring non-emergency medical care are also encouraged to call their family physician.
In the event locum physician coverage is found to support an earlier reopening of the ED, the community will be informed.
AHS is grateful for the support of local physicians who have helped to minimize this disruption for the community by extending existing shifts where possible. AHS also appreciates the support of surrounding healthcare centres and staff and would like to thank the community for its understanding during this time.
Alberta Health Services is the provincial health authority responsible for planning and delivering health supports and services for more than four million adults and children living in Alberta. Our mission is to provide a patient-focused, quality health system that is accessible and sustainable for all Albertans. Our current focus is on reducing emergency department wait-times, improving EMS response times, increasing access to surgeries, and improving patient flow.
