Northern B.C. city buys medical clinic to prevent its closure – CBC
City says it will have ‘minimal’ oversight of clinic
Jul 14, 2024
A northern B.C. clinic has avoided closure thanks to some creative thinking from the City of Dawson Creek.
It comes as much of the province, but especially northern and more rural communities, deal with a years-long health-care professional staff shortage that’s resulted in cities losing walk-in clinics, emergency rooms being closed for extended periods, communities left without family doctors and long wait times for specialized care.
The Eljen Medical Clinic was at risk of closure earlier this year when several doctors announced they were leaving the community, and Mayor Darcy Dober said the clinic’s owner planned to put it up for sale.
So, the city looked at its options and decided to buy it.
“This was a huge win for our community,” Dober said.
