Operating room at Yellowknife hospital will be emergencies-only next week, amid other shortfalls
A handful of communities will also only have emergency services or reduced services
More Northwest Territories communities will face disruptions to their health-care services.
As of Wednesday, Fort McPherson, Sachs Harbour and Fort Providence will only have emergency care available, while there will be reduced services in the Hay River, Fort Smith, Norman Wells, Tulita, Behchokǫ and Fort Resolution, according to a news release from the territory's Health department Wednesday evening.
In Hay River, in-patient beds are closed, services are reduced at the medical clinic and the emergency department is being supported by a practitioner, the release states.
And, July 18-22, the Stanton Territorial Hospital operating room will be reduced to emergency services only.
In a statement, Health Minister Julie Green said the N.W.T. is "facing significant staffing challenges," for several reasons, "creating uncertainty for many residents."
"I want to assure people that we are taking steps to make sure residents get the care they need when they need it," she said.
These changes are among several health-care related shortfalls causing disruptions in the territory. In June, health officials announced the laboratory at the Yellowknife Primary Care Centre would be closed from June 27 to Sept. 5, meaning there will be no laboratory or diagnostic imaging services at that location. Also in June, residents in Hay River were told expect to intermittent physician services between July and September, starting July 5.
Attracting — and keeping — health practitioners has been a "consistent challenge," Green said, adding that the pandemic, combined with a national shortage of health professionals, has meant the territory can't maintain all health-care services for the time being.
"This is creating service disruptions in the territory, especially over the summer months when staff are taking hard-earned time off," she said.
"Burnout caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, has led to the resignation, retirement, or reduced work hours of many health professionals across the country and in the N.W.T. Many of these people made huge sacrifices to help keep us safe during the pandemic, and now they are tired."
Green said a task team from the departments of Health and Social Services, Finance and all three health authorities is "taking immediate actions" to help manage the staffing shortages.
But, she added that, for now, there may be more triaging of care and longer waits for non-urgent issues.
"The health care field is highly competitive, and although the N.W.T. offers a competitive wage and benefits package to its professionals, it is taking special targeted measures including additional incentives," Green said.
"However, we continue to see challenges in hiring, and as such, service disruptions will continue."
Green said there has also been an increase in incidents of aggressive behaviour toward health-care staff, and asked residents to be "patient as they are doing what they can to ensure you receive the highest quality health care possible."
To check the status of health care service levels visit the territory's website.