Emergency department visits in the Cariboo have gone up 10 per cent compared to last year.
In a statement from Interior Health, they say that they continue to see people with less urgent issues which could be due to residents being unable to connect to family physicians.
Back in September, the City of Williams Lake also got two new healthcare landing coordinators. The goal was in hopes to retain physicians that get recruited in Williams Lake and 100 Mile House.
As of right now, there is also the issue of seasonal respiratory illness, making units busy in the Interior.
Interior Health added that they will continue to support recruitment for new primary care providers with the Division of Family Practice and other partners.
In 2021, the province of BC surpassed the national average of emergency department visits.
For more information on the 2021 numbers in the province, you can see MyPGNow’s story here.