There is a quote" its not what you've done but what you do with what you've done for others". As a 8 yr volunteer at Options for Sexual Health, I have seen the need for such a service. We help those individuals who do not have a family doctor, as you are aware the number is staggering. Even though we are open for a meager 2 hours, the nurse and volunteers give the information, examinations and medication when necessary. Not to have this service in Chilliwack as in other communities will force people to attend the ER or urgent care if there is a nurse or doctor working. As you are very aware, our emergency departments are overwhelmed and understaffed, having people attend ER with non-emergency issues and wait over 4-6 hours , if not more, will exhaust medical staff even more. I see the care and need we have given to many, many clients. We have built relationships with our clients for over 25 years. They feel safe, assured, and are comforted to know we are there to help. If this service is closed not only in Chilliwack but throughout B.C., it will be detrimental to the communities. I feel the cold and unconcise reason to close any clinic. There is no compassion or logic behind closing the doors. Funding will always be as issue, it might be possible to mainstream some of the help clients seek out. Possibly, a ph call , similar to telehealth that the family doctors, perhaps Fraser Health can train more nurses to perform paps or give out the cervix kits, (note: if a results comes back positive, a health professional must perform a pap, where does one go if the don't have a gp?) Perhaps, pharmacists can partake and give lab requisitions and Fraser Health also could possibly give the bloodwork requisitions out also. Restructuring is not a bad idea but it needs to be looked at in the near future. Your emergency departments will fill up with non ER issues, that is not a wait and see , it will happen. It already does. We try to help and take some pressure off the already exhausted medical system. Lets brainstorm and form a committee to help make Options even better and more streamline. More access and information so people know where to go and what is available to them. It will impact the community greatly if you go ahead and close all the facilities in BC. Ironic to close something that is not broken but helps those in need. It saddens me deeply that is has come down to monies , volunteers don't get paid, nurse(s) do. For 2 hours, once a week, this is not going to :"break the bank". Lets restructure, close for a bit if need be but find a solution to keep ALL clinics open. I implore you to think this through thoroughly and see the great need in all of the communities we serve.
I had CIN3 and need regular paps. I don’t have a family dr, so booking a pap through options is my only local option as I live in Mission BC and there is no women’s clinic here.
I am a mother, youth support worker in one job and former Youth in care students support worker in another job. I have worked in the interior health region in the west Kootenays and lived here the majority of my life. Options for sexual health clinics and sex sense line have been incredibly important to me personally and professionally. I have sought my own reproductive health support there, and accessed HIV/STI testing there as a youth. I have supported so many youth over the years, in my professional life, to receive nonjudgmental, accurate and safe reproductive and sexual healthcare at Options clinics. I have collaborated with sexual health educators who have made our communities safer by the work they do. I am also a part of an anti-violence committee in my community working to address the gaps in response for people experiencing intimate partner violence. When we talk about prevention and how incredibly important it is in the long and heartbreaking journey of ending intimate partner violence, options clinics are a part of that network or care. Options for sexual health educators, and resource line has been instrumental to the work that we do. I can’t describe what this resource has meant to our communities and the gap that it fills in our rural communities especially. For trying to advocate for their own care in a place where they cannot get a primary care physician, options for sexual health clinics have been the only place they can go to access birth control, information, HIV and STI testing, exams, and much more. I actually don’t know what I’m going to do for youth who do not have a family doctor or are experiencing precarious homelessness, or who have experienced family or physician barriers to discuss sexuality, sexual health and gender, affirming options. Through the mainstream systems (if they even have a primary care physician at all!) we cannot lose this service.
I have referred so many people to Options clinics for gender affirming care, for non heteronormative sex ed, for birth control support, and pap smears. Their experiences at those clinics has been almost universally amazing. I am genuinely shocked to find that there is a potential that some of these clinics might close. Their care model is needed in this system. Please reconsider and find funding to keep all these clinics open.
I don't have a family doctor, so I would have no access to sexual health care without the Options For Sexual Health clinic. This is such an invaluable resource for preventative care, saving people from long-term health implications. Having a safe space to discuss sexual health that's not in an Urgent Care setting (for those of us many Canadians without a GP or NP) should be a top priority.
I do not have a family doctor in the area, despite living there for four years.
The walk in clinic is closed until April 2025, after being closed the last four months of 2024. Where else can a woman get help for these needs, but emergency?
Emergency has turned me away when I needed to confirm a pregnancy test.
This clinic offers pregnancy tests and birth control options. Which are very needed.
Thanks.
