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

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. 

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. 

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.

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

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.   

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. 

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.

Interior Health continues to work with partners to stabilize existing services and design a future model of maternity care for Kamloops and the surrounding region. Together we provide the following update: Patients requiring immediate care: Anyone in labour, or experiencing urgent pregnancy related concerns, should always present to their closest hospital, including Royal Inland Hospital (RIH). For information and assistance, patients may call 250-314-2635 to speak with RIH Labour and Delivery. Hospital Maternity Services: Interior Health has secured full coverage of obstetrician on-call services at RIH. Dedicated efforts continue to recruit on-call coverage for low-risk deliveries with family practice physicians trained in obstetrics and midwives. We have full coverage for December and continue to work to obtain full coverage for January. Recruitment: Recruitment of new specialist obstetricians remains active with eight candidates in different parts of the recruitment process. We are pleased to announce two new obstetricians have been recruited and are estimated to start in May 2026. Care options in community: Early Pregnancy Access to Care &Triage Clinic (EPACT): In partnership with the Department of Midwifery, Interior Heath has supported the expansion of EPACT utilizing the North Shore Primary Care Clinic. Two additional days per week (16 appointments) have been added, and plans are in place to add a third day in January. This clinic offers easy access for expectant individuals in the first and second trimester to receive initial pregnancy care including prenatal bloodwork and ultrasounds. No referral is required to access care at this clinic. EPACT provides complete first and second trimester care and supports referrals to another provider for late pregnancy care and delivery, as well as referrals to high-risk specialists as needed. EPACT also supports early postpartum care for mother and newborn up to six weeks following delivery. Together, we would like to acknowledge the support of the Royal Inland Hospital Foundation who funded equipment to support these rapid service expansion efforts. To book an appointment with EPACT, please call or text: 250-318-3861. Family Practices and Community Health Centres: Community family physicians and midwives have increased primary care maternity services for patients from 30 weeks to term in collaboration with EPACT and Supporting Team Excellence with Patients Society (STEPS). Patients are referred to a family physician or midwife when community provider capacity is available. Future Service Model Development: We are working on a new vision for an integrated, team-based approach to maternity care, which supports pregnant mothers and families throughout their pregnancies. This model brings together physicians, midwives, nurses, allied health professionals and community partners to provide seamless, patient-centered care. This future model of maternity services is being developed in collaboration with Interior Health, the Thompson Region Division of Family Practice, providers STEPS, EPACT and community partners. This vision is in the early days as further engagement with providers, patients and key community partners is required before implementing a future model of care. We appreciate the collaborative planning efforts of the dedicated and engaged community providers and partners who are designing our way forward – collectively, we will move forward to support a new model for local care for expectant families. To support patients, a webpage has been developed which can be found here. Updates will be provided to the public as the situation changes.