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January 9, 2026
Public Service Announcement
The Nelson Community Health Services Centre remains temporarily closed due to water damage that occurred in the afternoon of Dec. 30. Interior Health does not have a confirmed date for re-opening of the health services centre at this time. Services provided at the centre are being reestablished at alternate locations, including unused space at the neighbouring Nelson Fairview Gardens, which was not impacted. Mental health and substance use services have been moved to the downtown Nelson location at 514 Vernon St. Services normally provided out of the centre include but are not limited to: Adult day services Mental health & substance use services Public health Early childhood development Home & community care services Environmental public health & licensing Interior Health will continue to contact current clients, including those with scheduled appointments, directly. Individuals who require new appointments or have questions related to any of these services should contact Interior Health at the following numbers: Mental Health and Substance Use Services: 250-505-7248 or 310-MHSU (6478) Call the general number at 250-505-7200 and select a specific service using the phone menu. Interior Health is requesting that individuals call the general number above to access new services. Drop-ins, with the exception of mental health and substance use at the downtown location, are not currently available. We will provide additional updates as they become available.
January 5, 2026
News Release
Kelowna General Hospital (KGH) is marking the completion of renovations to its Medical Imaging (MI) department, strengthening access to diagnostic services and improved patient care for people across the Interior. “These upgrades at Kelowna General Hospital put people first by ensuring patients, families and health-care workers have access to modern, reliable spaces that support high-quality care,” said Harwinder Sandhu, MLA for Vernon–Lumby. “As a long-time registered nurse, I’ve seen firsthand how much patients and care teams rely on modern imaging and hospital spaces to provide timely, compassionate care for people across the Interior. Recently, I also had the opportunity to visit a state-of-the-art facility with similar upgrades and heard overwhelmingly positive feedback from staff about how these improvements enhance both patient care and the working environment.” The KGH MI redevelopment project was delivered in two stages. Phase 1, completed April 25, 2025, added a single-storey building to the existing KGH MI department to accommodate new MRI equipment. Phase 2, open for patient care on Jan. 5, 2026, focused on renovation to the existing MI department to improve patient, visitor and staff spaces. “Patients and visitors accessing medical imaging at KGH will benefit from a more comfortable experience, while our staff now have improved spaces and tools to better support patient care,” said Sylvia Weir, president and CEO, Interior Health. “These new care areas reflect our ongoing commitment to providing exceptional care for people in the community and for those across the Interior who travel to Kelowna for specialty diagnostic services.” The recent renovations to KGH MI expanded the post-procedure recovery area from six to seven bays and improved patient comfort, privacy and safety. Additional upgrades were made to the patient and visitor waiting rooms, and staff areas. “The completion of this project reflects the power of strong partnerships and long-term planning,” said Tom Dyas, Chair of the Central Okanagan Regional Hospital District. “By investing in modern medical imaging infrastructure, we are helping patients across the region have access to accurate diagnostics, efficient services and high-quality care close to home.” The KGH MI department includes two state-of-the-art MRI scanners—a 3T and a 1.5T—strengthening access to timely, high-quality diagnostic services, reducing wait times, and supporting earlier diagnosis and treatment for patients across the region. "We are incredibly grateful to our community, donors, volunteers, and health care champions whose time and generosity helped make these vital improvements possible,” shared Allison Young, CEO, KGH Foundation. “Our volunteer run business enterprises generated one million dollars to help bring these services to KGH. We would like to extend a special thank you to all who support our social enterprises at KGH, and especially all the volunteers who give their time in support of our hospital.” The estimated total project cost is $37.8 million. The Province contributed $20.1 million, the Central Okanagan Regional Hospital District contributed $13.4 million, and the KGH Foundation contributed $4.3 million. Learn more: To learn more, read the April 2025 news release: https://www.interiorhealth.ca/media/expanded-medical-imaging-services-kelowna-general-hospital To see the KGH medical imaging department, watch the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wMrMhP3aV0
January 4, 2026
Public Service Announcement
100 Mile House and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. Emergency services will be unavailable from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. Patients can access care at Cariboo Memorial Hospital in Williams Lake during this time. All other inpatient services will continue at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.  Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1, or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week. 
January 1, 2026
Public Service Announcement
UPDATE: Interior Health has secured physician coverage tonight (Friday, Jan. 2, 2026) for the emergency department at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. Emergency services will re-open at 8 p.m. on Friday. 100 Mile House and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. Emergency services will be unavailable from 7 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 2 to 8 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. Patients can access care at Cariboo Memorial Hospital in Williams Lake during this time. All other inpatient services will continue at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.  Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1, or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week. 
December 30, 2025
Public Service Announcement
The Nelson Community Health Services Centre is temporarily closed due to water damage that occurred in the afternoon of Dec. 30. Interior Health appreciates the response of the Nelson Fire and Rescue Services, who supported our staff to safely evacuate and reduce further damage to the facility. Nelson Fairview Gardens (long-term care) was not directly impacted by this incident. The health services impacted include:  Adult day services Mental health & substance use services Public health Early childhood development Home & community care services Environmental public health & licensing Clients with current appointments will be contacted by care teams to re-schedule appointments or determine alternate care plans. Interior Health is working to re-establish health services as soon as possible. Restoration crews are on site and working to determine the extent of the damage and plans for remediation. We appreciate the challenges this situation presents to the local community and we will provide additional updates as they become available.
December 27, 2025
Public Service Announcement
UPDATE: Emergency services will be unavailable until 8 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 28. 100 Mile House and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. Emergency services will be unavailable from 7:00 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 27 to 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 27. Patients can access emergency care at Cariboo Memorial Hospital in Williams Lake during this time. All other inpatient services will continue at 100 Mile House District General Hospital People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility. Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 811, or visit http://www.healthlinkbc.ca/for non-emergency
December 26, 2025
Public Service Announcement
Oliver and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at South Okanagan General Hospital.  Emergency services will be unavailable from 5 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Dec. 27, 2025. Patients can access emergency care at Penticton Regional Hospital during this time.  All other inpatient services will continue at South Okanagan General Hospital.  People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.    Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 811, or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week.   
December 23, 2025
Public Service Announcement
100 Mile House and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. Emergency services will be unavailable from 7 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 24 to 8 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025. Patients can access care at Cariboo Memorial Hospital in Williams Lake during this time. All other inpatient services will continue at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.  Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1, or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week. 
December 21, 2025
Public Service Announcement
100 Mile House and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. Emergency services will be unavailable from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. Patients can access care at Cariboo Memorial Hospital in Williams Lake during this time. All other inpatient services will continue at 100 Mile House District General Hospital. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.  Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1, or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week.