Phone and email service has been restored to facilities that were experiencing issues the morning of Sunday, January 19. Thank you for bearing with us while our technical issues were resolved.

Selkirk Quick Care is closed today due to inclement weather affecting travel.

Phone lines will open again tomorrow starting at 9:30 am to book a same-day appointment.

If you are experiencing a medical emergency please call 9-1-1- or go to your nearest ER.

If you have a health related question and would like to speak to a registered nurse, please call Health Links – Info Sante’ Toll Free at 1-888-315-9257.

Manitobans can now apply for a modernized plastic health card online, Health, Seniors and Long-term Care Minister Uzoma Asagwara and Innovation and New Technology Minister Mike Moroz announced today. Learn how to apply for your card.

Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority (IERHA) leadership was made aware of a social media post disparaging the search for the remains of murdered Indigenous women. Multiple staff members recognized the post as racist and brought it forward to leadership.

An immediate investigation confirmed the post was linked to an IERHA employee. Direction was given to remove the post and the employee is now no longer working with IERHA.

Posts of this nature are deeply hurtful. We remain committed to reconciliation, anti-racism and to mitigating further harms through swift and decisive action.

Interlake-Eastern Health is now accepting nominations for this year’s Physician Emeritus Award.

Physicians who are retired or have reduced their practice in preparation for retirement are eligible for nomination if they have provided exemplary service and expertise to their communities.

The nomination can be submitted by either physician colleagues or by community members.

Nominations should have three signatures and a paragraph about why the physician should be considered for the award.

The regional Medical Advisory Committee will consider nominations and make the final decision about granting the designation based on the considerations listed above. The award will be presented at the annual physician dinner in April.

“As a medical professional, there is no higher honour than being recognized by the community you serve or the colleagues you work with daily,” said Dr. Charles Penner, regional lead of medical services and chief medical officer, Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority (RHA). “I look forward to the nominations of physicians in the region who go above and beyond every day for their patients.”

Have a physician in mind? Nominations should take into account the following factors:

• Length of service (commitment to the community)Scope of service

• Recognition of exemplary skill by colleagues

• Recognition by the community
• Demonstration of the Interlake-Eastern RHA values in their practice (always with compassion, success in collaboration, accountability in everything we do, acting with integrity and respectful of each other)

Please send nominations to Jennifer St. Laurent at [email protected] by February 7, 2025.

The regional Medical Advisory Committee will consider nominations and determine award recipients.

Award recipients will be recognized in-person at the annual physician dinner in April.

For past winners and other information, please see: Physician Emeritus Awards – Interlake-Eastern RHA

The first baby of 2025 arrived at Selkirk Regional Health Centre at 2:12 a.m. on New Year’s day.

Local to Selkirk, Tisha Hanson welcomed daughter Azayla who weighed seven pounds and 13 ounces and was 19.75 inches long.

Hanson says they had a good experience in the Selkirk obstetrical unit thanks to the staff.

“The staff were really good with her and me. They did everything I needed.,” Hanson said.

Chair of the Selkirk Hospital Gift Shop volunteers, Betty Milkowski, and volunteer Bev Hykawy maintained a tradition by gifting Azayla and mom with diapers, playpen, toys, blankets and clothing to celebrate the arrival of the first baby of 2025. Milkowski said the volunteers make the gift tradition possible.

“The most important thing is all the work that the volunteers do to help us. They make it possible for us to donate and help. This has been going on since the first hospital was built in Selkirk and the original ladies auxiliary was founded. Congratulations to Tisha and her new baby girl,” Milkowski said.

Dr. Bunkowsky attended the delivery. In 2024, 443 babies were born at Selkirk Regional Health Centre. Anyone interested in delivering with Selkirk’s obstetrics unit is invited to call 204.482.5800 for more information and to arrange a tour.

As part of our commitment to better service, we will begin collecting email addresses and cellphone numbers at hospital registration in our region starting January 6, 2025. We value your privacy and will only contact you from time to time for things like appointment reminders, to share educational material tailored to your care, or for occasional opportunities to share feedback.

Please visit Email Collection – Shared Health to learn more.

Emergency room wait times for Interlake-Eastern Health’s hospitals, including Selkirk Regional Health Centre, are currently not posted publicly. We are working to make this information available.

Interlake-Eastern Health does not endorse any emergency department wait time information provided online for its hospitals. The accuracy of this information can not be verified and it should not contribute to decision making regarding a visit to a hospital emergency room. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 911 or your local emergency number. To see the status of emergency departments in the region, please visit this emergency department schedule page.

Please note the following sites may be affected by holiday hours.

RAAM Clinic – Closed Dec. 25 & 26

Clinics – hours are posted here: https://www.ierha.ca/find-us/

Community Health Offices – Call before attending the week of Dec. 23-27. Phone numbers are listed here: https://www.ierha.ca/find-us/

Quick Care Clinic – Closed at 5 p.m. on Dec. 24 and closed Dec. 25

Emergency Department Schedules: Visit: https://www.ierha.ca/emergency-department-schedules/

Diagnostic Labs: All sites closed at noon on Dec. 24. Closed all day Dec. 25, 26 and Jan. 1
https://www.ierha.ca/programs-services/primary-health-care/diagnostics/

If you or a family member require non-urgent health care services, some doctors’ offices and clinics in the region offer extended hours care and same day appointments. Contact your local doctor’s office for appointment information.

Selkirk QuickCare clinic is open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends and most holidays. (Closed Christmas Day). Call 204-482-4399 to make a same-day appointment. Phones answered starting at 9:30 a.m.

For minor ailments and non-life threatening concerns virtual care is available through QDoc, a free, provincially funded, online platform that connects patients to doctors by video. Visit qdoc.ca for more information.

Some pharmacists have additional training that allows them to provide medications for conditions such as rashes or acne and some infections like recurring bladder infections. Please call before you attend to confirm the service you are seeking is available and that you are a candidate for treatment. To find a pharmacy near you, visit https://cphm.alinityapp.com/Client/CorporationDirectory.

Health Links – Info Santé is staffed with registered nurses and nurse practitioners who are available 24 hours a day every day of the year. Depending on patients’ described condition and community location in Manitoba, nurses can provide clinical guidance to contact a family physician or a walk-in clinic, present to an emergency department or to an urgent care centre and they can provide advice on self-care treatments at home. Call toll-free 1-888-315-9257.

If you’re caring for a sick child with a fever, visit www.ierha.ca and select “Patient Information” > “Where to go” > “Kid Care”. Helpful short videos featuring Dr. Andrea Wilkie-Gilmore, a pediatric emergency physician at Health Sciences Centre, will help to navigate questions about fever, symptoms, medicating and when to bring a child for emergency care.

Anyone experiencing mental health or addiction concerns can call Interlake-Eastern Health’s 24 Hour Crisis Line at 1-866-427-8628. Other mental health resources are profiled at www.ierha.ca > Programs & Services > Mental Health & Addictions.

If you are experiencing a medical emergency, always call 911. In the event you need to visit an emergency department, visit “Emergency Dept. Schedules” to see emergency department status within the Interlake-Eastern health region. You can also call 1-886-267-5818 to select your community of choice and listen to a recorded message on emergency department status.

Memory trees offer a place to reflect on loss of loved ones

This year, there will be holiday memory trees in many facilities and public places for people to mark the loss of a loved one. Barb Ramsay, palliative care volunteer coordinator, says this is a significant way for people to process their grief and help themselves through the holidays.

“Every year we try to make the grieving process a little easier with the palliative care memory trees. We have all experienced loss and grief to some degree,” says Ramsay. “Support systems and ways to honor are an important part of the healing process.”

This year, Interlake-Eastern Health’s palliative care program has several places hosting memory trees to honor people who have passed away.

Southwest District Palliative Care(SWDPC) supports clients and their families specifically in the municipalities of Rockwood, Rosser, St. Laurent, Woodlands, part of Armstrong and the towns of Stonewall and Teulon, who are dealing with declining health or in need of grief support. SWDPC is now a part of the Nav-CARE program which facilitates the development of volunteer navigators to support persons living at home with declining health.  The Board is thankful for donations and community support as SWDPC depends solely on both for its funding.

Traditionally, SWDPC also places Memory Trees in the South Interlake Regional Library branches of Teulon and Stonewall. Donation envelopes are available or can be made online.

Interlake-Eastern RHA facilities and the two libraries have memory card ornaments available to place on any of the trees for the communities, as well as any for patients, residents, families and employees in each area.

Below is a list of the locations and communities where Memory Trees can be found, each setup along with the help of RHA program staffand SWDPC Board members and volunteers. Everyone is invited to honor the memory of their loved onesand appreciate some time for reflection.

• Arborg Personal Care Home
• Ashern Hospital
• Ashern Personal Care Home
• Beausejour Hospital
• Beausejour Primary Health Care Centre
• Beausejour East Gate Lodge
• Kin Place Personal Care Home in Oakbank
• Eriksdale’s E.M. Crowe Hospital
• Eriksdale Personal Care Home
• Fisher Branch Personal Care Home
• Gimli Hospital
• Interlake-Eastern Health Services Building
• Lac du Bonnet Primary Health Centre
• Lac du Bonnet Personal Care Home
• Lundar Personal Care Home
• Pinawa Hospital
• Pinawa Mall
• Selkirk Community Health Office
• Selkirk Regional Health Centre
• St. Laurent Community Health Centre
• Rosewood Lodge Personal Care Home (Stonewall)
• Stonewall SIR Library (SWDPC)
• Teulon SIR Library (SWDPC)
• Teulon Hospital
• Goodwin Lodge (Teulon)
• Whitemouth & District Health Centre

Ramsay goes on to say that during the holiday season when so much focus is on family, it can be difficult for people who are grieving to feel like celebrating.

“These are meaningful gestures which are so important around any special day when our sorrow is heightened.”

Public and facility trees are set up now, and card ornaments for all ages will be placed with each tree.

This holiday season, everyone can access online mental health support at anytime on www.ierha.ca www.ierha.ca/programs-services/mental-health/. The RHA also has a 24 hour crisis line: 1-866-427-8628.