The emergency room in Hinton, Alta., will be without a doctor for seven nights in a row this week.

The service disruption, from March 10-16, is the latest in a string of closures that leaders of the town — located about 280 kilometres west of Edmonton — say is putting a strain on the whole region. 

While there is no on-site ER doctor at the Hinton Healthcare Centre between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m., the hospital remains staffed by nurses who can still triage patients and refer them to other medical facilities as needed.

Hinton Mayor Brian LaBerge said not having a doctor on site for several nights in a row has become a regular occurrence.

“What happens at night if you have to send someone to Edmonton? If there’s a complication on the way? That’s a long way to go.”

A regional strain

Hinton and Edson, located about 90 kilometres apart along the busy Highway 16 corridor, try to co-ordinate schedules to ensure at least one town’s ER is covered.

Even still, sometimes neither hospital has a doctor on site, said Edson Mayor Kevin Zahara, which he said creates a “huge problem” for the region of about 30,000.

“We’re a large region, we’re rural-based with a lot of traffic and a lot of industry,” he said. “So we do need some changes and hopefully [will] find some relief for the physicians in our area.”

Zahara said shortages in one town spill over to the next, creating longer wait times and adding pressure on the doctors and nurses.

“This is not sustainable,” he said. “We need more action by the province … in order to get the positions we need in keeping our ERs open in our area.”

Virtual care

Among the steps the Alberta government has taken to address physician shortages in rural ERs is through a pilot program called the Virtual Emergency Physician program.

Hinton and Edson are among 10 Alberta communities who use telehealth as part of the program, which virtually connects the hospital to an off-site doctor. 

That remote physician works with local staff, speaks directly with patients through a screen, orders tests and medications, and transfers or discharges patients.

The province issued a news release that stated Hinton will have access to a doctor virtually for either some or all of the seven nights that the service advisory is in effect for the town.

Zahara said he believes the virtual physician program is a “fantastic alternative in the case of not having physicians available, but it still does not provide the level of care that I think that our region requires.”

Working together

An overall  physician shortage has created an alliance between Hinton, Edson and Yellowhead County to advocate on behalf of the region.

 Zahara said the trio recently met with Primary Care Alberta and people working on recruitment efforts, which led to “very good discussions.”

Although one new doctor is on their way to practising in Edson, there are still six vacancies open.

Hinton has had some recent recruitment success with three new doctors joining the Hinton Medical Clinic, all with mandatory hospital shifts.

Provincial response

Kyle Warner, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Hospital and Surgical Health Services, said Alberta’s government is aware that more must be done to stabilize rural emergency departments.

He pointed to the $16-million Rural and Remote Family Medicine Resident Physician Bursary pilot program, which aims to support doctors who commit to practising in rural communities.

“Staffing small emergency departments is a challenge across Canada, but this is part of a long-term solution,” Warner said in a statement.