Interior Health announces expanded primary care hours for Kaslo Victorian Health Centre
By Nelson Daily Staff
Local physicians, Doctors of BC and Interior Health have joined together to offer an expansion of primary care for residents at the Victorian Community Health Centre in Kaslo.
In a media release Friday, starting in September, the primary care clinic at Victorian Community Health Centre will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for physician appointments on weekends.
“This expansion to the current weekday service is possible through an agreement reached between local physicians, the Doctors of BC, and Interior Health,” the media release said.
“Under the agreement, the weekend service will start Saturday, September 3, and be trialed for a four-month period.
“Following the trial period, Interior Health and the physicians will evaluate the service based on how often weekend primary care is being used to determine whether or not it should continue into the future.”
Interior Heath said individuals who wish to book an appointment to see their doctor on the weekend should contact Health Centre staff at 250-353-2291 extension 5 during regular weekday business hours (9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday).
Weekend access to the health centre will be through the upstairs entrance to the site (off 7th Street).
“There will be also be access to some walk-in appointments for unexpected medical issues,” the release said
“Depending on the number of booked appointments and same-day patients, physicians may not be able to see all patients who come to the health centre without an appointment. All efforts will be made to accommodate patients, but Interior Health urges people to book appointments whenever possible.”
Emergency Department hours at the Health Centre remain unchanged, with the ED open on Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Kaslo and area residents who require emergency care outside regular weekday Emergency Department hours should call 9-1-1.
If individuals are unsure if their care needs, they are encouraged to call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1 (24 hour service), to speak to a nurse.
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