The Sylvan Lake Advanced Ambulatory Care Service (SLAACS) will be temporarily closed at various times over the weekend due to gaps in physician coverage.
Temporary closures include:
- Aug. 13, from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m.. New patients will not be admitted after 2 p.m. to allow the physician and staff to treat and discharge those in care.
- Aug. 15, from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Aug. 16, from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m.
These closures are a temporary measure taken as a last resort. Patients arriving at SLAACS outside the hours of operation will be redirected to other care options as appropriate.
These options include returning the next day during hours of operation, booking an appointment with their family doctor, or calling Health Link at 811 for medical information and advice.
Patients can also access medical care from facilities in nearby communities, including Rocky Mountain House and Red Deer, noted the release.
Scheduled appointments with other health services – like Public Health, laboratory and Addiction and Mental Health –at the Sylvan Lake Community Health Centre are not impacted by the temporary closures.
Sylvan Lake Advanced Ambulatory Care Service offers diagnosis and treatment of urgent, but non-life-threatening conditions, seven days a week. These include sudden illness or injury that could be cared for in a doctor’s office but requires immediate attention.
Patients requiring emergency medical care are to call 911.
All avenues to secure physician coverage for the weekend have been exhausted. Efforts to secure coverage of other vacant shifts later in the month are ongoing to minimize impacts to service and the community as much as possible, as AHS works until the last possible minute to secure locum physician coverage and avoid closure.
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