The Juniper Ridge neighbourhood of Kamloops when it caught fire in 2021

Canada Day is often celebrated around Canada with fireworks. In 2021, Mother Nature provided a light show in the form of a lightning storm for those living in the Juniper Ridge and Valleyview neighbourhoods of Kamloops.

A wooded area below the ridge appeared to have ignited from the lightning and fire quickly spread towards homes in Valleyview, leading to tactical evacuations of homes under threat and Kamloops Fire Rescue calling out every available firefighter to work.

Name: Nicole Walby (she/her/hers) 
Job Title: Manager, Clinical Operations
Years of Service: 1
Worksite: Royal Inland Hospital
Community: Kamloops
Ancestral Territory: Secwepemc
Advice to live by: “Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.” - Minor Myers Jr.

Clearwater and area residents are advised of a temporary change to the emergency department hours at Dr. Helmcken Memorial Hospital tonight due to unforeseen limited staffing availability.

The emergency department will be closed:

• 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 25 to 7 a.m. Thursday, May 26

Interior Health regrets this temporary change to normal operations and reminds residents to take note of the following if they require care while the emergency department is closed:

Please see the attached document to learn more about the look, contamination, and risk associated with the current drug alert. 

View more toxic drug, environmental, and COVID-19 alerts.

Our social media platforms are a great way to engage with our Interior Health community and share information. Check out these recent posts, and consider sharing them with your friends and family on your own social channels. 

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People will benefit from the major expansion at Penticton Regional Hospital as final renovations wrap up at the David E. Kampe Tower. 

Read the full release

Interior Health (IH) is upgrading heart monitors across the region, improving patient access to important diagnostic testing, and enhancing timely access for physicians and nurse practitioners to these reports.

A heart (or Holter) monitor is a diagnostic test that monitors cardiac rhythms via continuous electrocardiogram (ECG) tracing over 24 hours or more. This service is offered at 31 sites across IH.

Émilie Paquin (pictured above) is a Grade 8 student from Revelstoke. She loves to ski, mountain bike, swim, rock climb, and play volleyball and soccer.

“I can do all of these things – even as a deaf person,” she says, adding that her electronic hearing devices (cochlear implants) have given her “superpowers” that allow her to listen to music without anyone knowing, and even mute her brother when he’s bugging her. She also speaks three languages – English, sign, and French, the latter a result of her parents hailing from Quebec.

Often during an emergency, there are people who stand out as exceptional leaders. Michael-Ann Miller (pictured above), clinical operations manager in the South Okanagan (SOK), is one of them.

In the fall of 2021, the Tulameen River crested and flooded the town of Princeton in the SOK. During the flood, with roads and highways cut off due to water rising, Michael-Ann was the eyes and ears on the ground, supporting and coordinating emergency efforts. Homes were devastated, and water, gas and other utilities were impacted. 

Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital emergency department nurses: Jane Carlton, Tamara Roscoe, Teresa Myers, and Emily Larochelle.

Interior Health is making the opioid use disorder medication Suboxone widely available in its hospital emergency departments.

Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a treatable medical condition. And, yet, many people living with OUD don’t have a regular care provider who can help connect them to medication. For many, their first exposure to treatment is through an emergency department (ED).