District of 100 Mile House calls for transparency on emergency room closures

Temporary service interruptions at the 100 Mile District General Hospital have become all too common in recent months.

Over the last year, the emergency room at the 100 Mile Hospital has been closed several times, either overnight on weekends or, in some rare cases, throughout an entire day. This has meant that those needing emergency care in the South Cariboo have had to check to see if the ER is open and, if not, travel instead to the Cariboo Memorial Hospital in Williams Lake.

Following the recent string of closures this October, with the most recent occurring all day on Sunday, Oct. 19, the District of 100 Mile House council has sent a letter to Interior Health requesting answers. The letter is addressed to Sylvia Wier, the newly confirmed CEO of IH.

In the letter council described the closures as “ongoing and unacceptable”, noting they are no longer sporadic disruptions, but instead frequent and destabalizing. According to IH, there have been 18 service disruptions in 100 Mile House this year, three of which have taken place this month.

“As the only hospital serving 100 Mile House and the wider South Cariboo region, the inability to access emergency medical care locally is putting lives at risk and undermining public confidence in the healthcare system under Interior Health’s responsibility,” the District of 100 Mile House wrote. “This is a crisis — and we need immediate action. Residents are being forced to travel upwards of 90 minutes to Williams Lake or beyond for emergency care, often during dangerous weather conditions and without access to reliable transportation. This is not a sustainable or safe solution. It is a failure of the system to provide equitable and timely healthcare access.”

In their letter, council said that 100 Mile House’s healthcare professionals serve the community with commitment and compassion, but are “exhausted, under-resourced, and struggling to maintain essential services without the support and staffing they need.”

Council acknowledged that IH has told them they are working on a solution, but stated that the closures demonstrate there is no sustainable or effective plan in place.

As a result, council demanded four things from Wier and IH as a whole. Firstly, a written explanation that outlines the root causes of local ER closures. Secondly, a clear, actionable and time-bound recovery plan to restore consistent 24/7 services, including measures to stabilizie the situation and strategies for long-term recruitment and retention of healthcare workers.

Thirdly, they requested that IH engage directly with local South Cariboo leadership on an ongoing basis in the development of the aforementioned plan. Finally, they requested that IH be more transparent with the public on staffing levels to restore trust and accountability.

“100 Mile House is a resilient community, but we cannot — and will not — continue to bear the consequences of systemic inaction. Access to emergency healthcare is not a privilege. It is a right. Our residents deserve better, and our healthcare workers deserve better,” the district stated in their letter. “We respectfully request a formal written response and the scheduling of a meeting with Interior Health leadership.”

Mayor Maureen Pinkney said that other health authorities manage hospitals and schedules different from IH. She said the district believes the province needs to get on board and standarize the system.

“It’s the province’s responsibility to look after the healthcare and we want them to step up,” Pinkney said. “There are too many restrictions in the legislation, like Bill 36, dictating where (healthcare workers) can work and where they can’t work. It was time to write a very direct letter and catch someone’s attention.”

Kelly Dillon, the clinical operations director for IH and the former operations director for 100 Mile House and Clearwater, said that she recognizes that any changes to normal services are concerning for the people of 100 Mile House, especially when they affect the ER. She said IH is committed to exploring all strategies to prevent service interruptions and works closely with partners like the Central Interior Rural Division of Family Practice to recruit new physicians.

“A service disruption is definitely the last resort when all other avenues of staff staffing is exhausted,” Dillon noted. “The good news is we do have a new physician expected to arrive in 100 Mile House in March of 2026. Their medical practice will include support for the hospital’s emergency department, which will help stabilize the emergency department services.”

Dillon said that the majority of the emergency department nursing positions at the hospital are filled. Right now, she said, the ER has 10 permanent nurses and four casual staff with emergency department training. They also have an additional eight licensed practical nurses “supporting care at the local emergency department.”

“Interior Health appreciates the dedication of our current staff to local patients. We are actively recruiting for an additional four permanent nurses to fill vacancies and support local services,” Dillon said. “As I tell you this (on Friday, Oct. 24), we actually signed two more nurses yesterday, which is really exciting for the emergency department. These are nurses who have a lot of experience and have worked in the Cariboo and are choosing to make 100 Mile House their home, moving forward.”

Typically, when ER closures happen, Dillon said it is because of an unexpected last-minute absence, often of a physician, due to sickness or personal reasons. Normally, Dillon said the ER is staffed by at least two nurses and a Licensed Practical Nurse at any one time, with doctor support. If any two staff members call in sick, they’re unable to provide best practice care.

Beyond bringing in additional staff, Dillon noted that IH is currently piloting a program that will bring virtual emergency department physicians to small regional hospitals like 100 Mile House. This will allow physicians physically in the community to take a break from working a night shift and help plug gaps left by a sudden absence.

“Depending on the results of this pilot, further expansions to other communities within Interior Health may be considered,” Dillon said. “That’s a hard one when you have physicians who are working all day, then choose to support us by working in the emergency department overnight.”

Pinkney said that since council originally published the letter on Wednesday, Oct. 22, IH has already responded to them. While Wier is currently on vacation, Pinkney said she reached out and agreed to attend an upcoming council meeting in 100 Mile House to answer their questions.

“Ultimately, we just want doctors here. We know the work-life balance has changed in everybody’s world and we need more doctors because of that,” Pinkney said. “That wasn’t necessarily planned and could have been foreseen a little bit but that’s sort of the past. Moving forward, we just need a lot more people trained. Healthcare is essential. So if that means we’re having to assist some of the people who can’t afford to become doctors and nurses, maybe that’s what we have to be doing instead of having closed hospitals.”