by Jenny Read, KDH
The Kemptville District Hospital (KDH) Emergency Department resumed 24-hour operations on Tuesday, September 6, 2022 as planned. The Hospital had announced on August 31 that its Emergency Department would be closed from 7 pm to 7 am for six nights as a result of a staffing shortage.
“I am very pleased to announce that our staffing situation has stabilized and we can once again ensure that all employees and physicians have a safe work environment and our patients can receive safe care – care that they have come to expect from KDH,” said Frank Vassallo, KDH’s Chief Executive Officer. “We are grateful to our community for their patience during the temporary partial closure.”
CEO Vassallo stated that KDH continues to monitor staffing levels, and is taking steps to prevent future closures, including actively recruiting new nurses, working with temporary staffing agencies, and evaluating different staffing strategies and alternate models of care.
“With that being said,” he added, “it’s important to remember that these are unprecedented and fluid times relative to health human resources; as such, future ED closures could occur even in the face of extraordinary efforts to keep the department open 24/7.”
KDH was one of four eastern Ontario hospitals to experience an emergency department closure over the Labour Day weekend: Glengarry Memorial Hospital in Alexandria, and Carleton Place and District Memorial Hospital both closed their emergency departments overnight on Saturday, and Almonte General Hospital was closed on Monday night.
