No timeline on Thompson hospital hot water repairs

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This article was published 05/04/2022 (898 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Thompson General Hospital has been dealing with a hot water problem for close to two weeks — and no one can say when it will be fixed.

“Parts are on order but delayed due to supply chain issues,” a spokeswoman for the Northern Health region said in an email. Twyla Storey said the inconsistency of hot water has been an issue for a couple of weeks and has been identified in various parts of the city hospital.

“Patient safety is our priority and contingency plans and processes are in place to keep patients and staff safe until the hot water issues have been fixed.”

Storey said they don’t know when the needed parts will arrive but repairs will begin as soon as they’re received.

In question period Wednesday, Flin Flon MLA Tom Lindsey asked Health Minister Audrey Gordon if she was aware of the problem and when it will be addressed.

“I’m sure it’s being rectified,” Gordon said in the house. “(Northern Health) has a strong leadership team and I’m sure it’s being looked into.”

Lindsey said he wrote to the minister Tuesday about the the situation at the hospital 760 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

He said it would not be acceptable for a Winnipeg hospital’s patients and staff to have to put up with such a problem for such a long period of time. “Imagine the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg trying to operate without hot water?”

Gordon said she’d check with the health region on the status of the problem.

No services have been put on hold as a result of the hot water problem, Storey said. “The Northern Health region apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause.”

The Thompson hospital has 79 acute care beds, which includes a 10 bed in-patient acute care adult psychiatric unit.

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca