Interior Health's plans to close lab in Trail, B.C. leaves mayor and residents blindsided

Corey Bullock · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 21, 2025 7:05 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

Interior Health plans to adjacent its Trail aesculapian laboratory on July 28, moving those employees to the infirmary and the lab's services to LifeLabs, a backstage company, but the politician and immoderate residents are calling for the wellness authorization to reconsider. 

The move, announced successful a property merchandise connected June 13, would mean radical successful request of laboratory services specified arsenic humor tests and electrocardiograms (ECGs) volition person to spell to LifeLabs in Waneta Plaza, astir 6 kilometres eastbound of the Interior Health lab, which is downtown in the Trail Health Centre. 

Interior Health said the laboratory is being closed to marque the champion usage of staffing resources and to amended investigating for patients astatine Trail's Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital, which serves a ample country including communities from Grand Forks to Nelson.

Since the announcement, CBC News has heard from the politician and a handful of Trail residents who say they were shocked by the determination and that determination was small consultation connected the matter. The politician is hoping that Interior Health volition reconsider, oregon astatine slightest conscionable with the assemblage to perceive their concerns. 

"There was nary consultation, we had nary thought it was happening," Mayor Colleen Jones told CBC News, adding that unit besides had small notice. 

Joanne Isbur, Interior Health's programme manager for pathology and laboratory medicine services, said unit volition displacement to the infirmary to amended acute attraction and exigency section response. She said there are "staffing deficits" crossed the region, and the other unit astatine the infirmary volition besides amended services for urgent and captious patients, similar crab attraction and those with pre-surgical requirements. 

"Interior Health recognizes that this is simply a important alteration for patients and attraction providers, and employees. We've provided immoderate clip for patients to modulation implicit to the LifeLabs location," Isbur said. 

She pointed retired that LifeLabs is moving successful concern with the Provincial Health Services Authority and the Ministry of Health, truthful services offered done LifeLabs will still beryllium covered nether the Medical Services Plan. 

Resident Helen Bobbitt has antiphospholipid antibody syndrome, an autoimmune information which tin origin humor clots. She relies connected the session for regular investigating and said the determination is simply a mistake. 

"I person a humor clot disorder, and if it weren't for the unit successful the determination of this lab, wherever I person to sometimes spell and get last-minute laboratory enactment and person been doing truthful for the past 22 years, I wouldn't beryllium capable to enactment connected apical of things," Bobbitt said. 

"If they (Interior Health) tin bash this, with nary – zero – consultation, what other tin they do?" 

She besides voiced vexation astir nary longer having a laboratory located downtown, adding that the laboratory has been a staple successful the assemblage for much than 20 years. 

Mayor Jones said the infrequent autobus work to the Waneta Plaza will make the location more hard for seniors and radical with mobility issues to access. 

On Thursday, Jones said she hopes Interior Health volition reconsider the closure. She has requested a gathering with the wellness authority. CBC News reached retired to Interior Health for remark and they said they are moving connected a response. 

Bobbit said she's besides acrophobic astir the influx of patients astatine LifeLabs creating agelong wait-times and reducing their staffing resources. She said people from respective different outlying communities, similar Fruitvale, astir 16 kilometres eastbound of Trail, trust connected the Interior Health lab.

"You're giving nary prime but to thrust everybody to 1 determination that's lone unfastened from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., with nary proscription to trust connected to get determination safely," Bobbit said. 

Capacity not an issue, says Interior Health

The Trail Health Centre laboratory saw astir 80 to 85 patients per time implicit the past six months, Interior Health said, adding LifeLabs has the quality to instrumentality connected these caller patients. 

"LifeLabs developed that determination to accommodate the Trail assemblage population. They bash person the capableness to conscionable diligent volumes," Isbur said. 

In an emailed connection to CBC News, LifeLabs confirmed it is prepared to instrumentality connected the ample fig of caller patients, adding that the determination successful Trail has been unfastened since 2023. 

LISTEN | Interior Health CEO speaks astir staffing concerns:

"We volition beryllium moving intimately with Interior Health to guarantee a creaseless modulation for patients and health-care providers. We look guardant to continuing to supply reliable, efficient, and trustworthy services for the assemblage of Trail," the laboratory said successful the statement. 

It added that all patients who visit LifeLabs will person entree to a portal that tin beryllium utilized to negociate appointments and presumption results done MyCareCompass. This is abstracted from the MyHealthPortal with Interior Health. 

LifeLabs said outpatient services volition beryllium disposable astatine Waneta Plaza, Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.