Winnipeggers and some unions representing health care workers have concerns — and some cautious optimism — about the first closure of a Winnipeg emergency department.
This morning, the Victoria General Hospital emergency department converts to a lower-level urgent care centre.
The hospital's Mature Women's Health Centre saw its last patients on Friday, and patients are being shifted to the Health Sciences Centre.
But the urgent care service — which covers everything from injuries, infections, and other non life-threatening ailments — accounts for the majority of emergency-room visits, according to the Winnipeg health authority, and those services will continue at that site.
With the closure of the Misericordia Urgent Care Centre on Monday, Winnipeggers are being advised to visit the Victoria General Hospital for urgent care instead.
