Thessalon emergency department faces temporary closure due to physician shortage

The North Shore Health Network (NSHN) is currently working with provincial health care partners to avoid a potential temporary closure of its Thessalon site, including its emergency department, due to a shortage of physicians.

President and chief executive officer Richard Joly said Monday that the NSHN site in Thessalon has been faced with the prospect of closing its doors after Christmas Day and into the early weeks of January, but that has changed significantly over the weekend based on the discussions with all the partners involved,” including the Ministry of Health and Ontario Health. 

“It’s a growing concern provincially, so we’re not alone in Ontario,” said Joly. “Small, rural northern communities like Thessalon and surrounding areas are a bit more impacted just because of where we’re located.”

The NSHN site in Thessalon is supposed to be staffed with four physicians, but is currently down to just two. There’s a real possibility, Joly said, that the site could be down to a lone physician, or none at all, in a couple of months from now. 

NSHN receives contracted physicians which have an obligation to serve its around-the-clock emergency departments in Thessalon, Blind River and Richards Landing. 

“The public needs to know that physicians are not hired by the North Shore Health Network - they have contractual arrangements with the Ministry of Health, and that’s negotiated with their associations,” Joly said. 

A closure of the Thessalon site would result in patients having to go to Blind River, Richards Landing or Sault Ste. Marie in order to receive care. 

“In the event of a closure, of course that would change, because people will have to seek their emergency care at other sites like Blind River, Richards Landing or Sault Area Hospital - and none of these partners, even our other sites, can absorb all that volume,” Joly said. 

NSHN has a checklist and protocols around site closure, but Joly is encouraged by the positive direction of talks over the weekend. 

He expects to have confirmation of those developments sometime in the coming days. 

“It’s fluid. It’s changing by the hour in a very positive direction,” Joly said.