Effective Monday, Concordia Hospital’s emergency department will cease to exist.
The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA) is converting the ER at Concordia to a 24/7 Urgent Care Centre as of June 3.
That means the facility won’t be able to treat life-threatening health concerns, although it’s designed to help patients with serious conditions but are otherwise stable with no immediate risk to their lives.
“The decision to transition to urgent care clinic on June 3 was made because there was insufficient staff to sustain an emergency department, an emergency department requires more staff than an urgent care,” Shared Health’s Dr. Brock Wright said.
That, the WRHA said Wednesday, could be anything from broken or sprained limbs, to serious infections or illnesses, to injuries from slips and falls, and other non-life-threatening trauma.
The same change is expected at Seven Oaks Hospital in September, and follows the transition of Victoria General Hospital’s emergency department to an urgent care centre back in 2017.
“We have every confidence that come Monday and there after, we have the plan in place to both insist on patient safety and system stability,” Health Minister Cameron Friesen said.
Concordia’s Chief Medical Officer told 680 CJOB about two-thirds of the patients treated in its current ER would receive satisfactory care at an urgent care centre.
A community-led group protested against the closure of the Seven Oaks emergency room on Wednesday afternoon.
WATCH: Transcona residents ‘relieved’ over health care transformation at Concordia Hospital
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