The Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority has provided assurances to the Municipality of Bifrost-Riverton's Council. CEO Ron Van Denakker discussed ongoing concerns over doctor shortages and the practice of nurse managed care at this week's Council meeting. Some of the region's doctors have threatened to pull out if the practice --which sees no doctor on site at some hospitals, and nurses communicating via phone-- wasn't changed to a more sustainable, long-term model.

Bifrost-Riverton Reeve Harold Foster says they currently have two doctors in place at the hospital in Arborg, and Van Denakker provided some assurances to the councillors.

"What we have is an assurance that as long as there's a doctor in the community, the emergency room will stay open. We have had times in the past, when a specific emergency room wasn't open, sometimes it would be Arborg, sometimes Gimli, Ashern, or Eriksdale, so we'd have people running in all directions."

One of the other concerns raised is the service interruptions, and how they're communicated with the public. Foster says if an emergency room is temporarily closed, some members of the public may have to visit multiple facilities.

"(The closure) is not always posted either, so first you have to go to your own emergency room, and find out where to go from there. It's a major problem for us. We did have a little bit of assurance that as long as a doctor's available in the community, the emergency room will continue to be used."

The main challenge for the IERHA is doctor recruitment, and Van Denakker's previously stated there's no easy solution to the problem. However, Foster says the CEO did indicate some hope for the future, when it comes to bringing in more physicians to the region.

"He was talking about down the road, where some of the other health authorities have given way to Interlake-Eastern, to get more doctors and that. He thinks about two years down the road things may get better."

The concerns over health care were put in the spotlight recently, as about 300 Eriksdale residents gathered outside their hospital to call for changes to the way the ERs are operated. Since that time the West-Interlake Health Advisory Committee has been given permission to aid in doctor recruitment to help fill the gaps.