Starting in today's paper and running for the rest of the week, Citizen readers will be seeing plenty of stories about Burns Lake.
Along with today's feature by Ted Clarke on the state of health care in Burns Lake, Citizen reporter Frank Peebles is in Burns Lake this week to cover the Minerals North 2012 conference, as well as to take the community's temperature on how it's doing now and what its prospects are for the future.
The community has already been in the news plenty this year, due to the tragedy at Babine Forest Products. The explosion at the Burns Lake sawmill killed two men, injured dozens and put hundreds out of work. In a community with just 3,700 residents, the loss of that sawmill, owned by Oregon-based Hampton Associates, could have a devastating impact on the economic future of Burns Lake, as well as the members of the Burns Lake Indian Band and the Lake Babine Nation.
Yet all is not lost in Burns Lake.
Today's lead story describes the lack of doctors in Burns Lake and what the proposed new hospital means for the community and area residents.
It will mean even more, says a retired Burns Lake family physician, if the hospital has an operating room and the medical staff to go with it.
"The discussion lies around whether it is worth training up nurses to do [surgical] work in Burns Lake, but there is a demand for that sort of thing," Dr. Alan Hill says. "Without it, the local industry doesn't have as much confidence in the area and you are less likely to get investment. That's been brought up time and time again by the leaders of industry in the area."
Hill's concerns tie into the Minerals North 2012 conference, which opens today and runs through Friday. As mining companies continue to explore and develop new mines in central and northern B.C., they will be looking at northern communities, their populations and their infrastructure to support their operations.
Burns Lake has the outdoor amenities and attractions to satisfy the employees of any operation. Along with the lakes for boating and fishing, the area offers some of the best mountain bike trails in the province. In the winter, Burns Lake is amazing for snowmobiling and has superb trails for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.
Particularly if the sawmill isn't rebuilt in Burns Lake, the community will have numerous reliable workers, already experienced in resource development. Schools, a public library, a community arena and shopping are all in place, with a new hospital set to open in 2015.
A hospital that provides basic care for area residents, with an operating room for routine procedures is critical to the long-term future of Burns Lake. If area residents have to go to Smithers or Vanderhoof for caesarian sections or to have tonsils and appendix removed, an important link to the community is lost.
Furthermore, a Burns Lake operating room could provide emergency care for injured forestry and mining workers, not to mention the victims of accidents on an increasingly busy Highway 16.
Prince George residents should be fierce advocates for the development of Burns Lake, starting with its new hospital and increasing the number of doctors and medical staff. As the regional hub, Prince George's ongoing economic health depends on the spokes of the wheel feeding into this community. Burns Lake's contribution to Prince George cannot be overlooked and growth in Burns Lake is nothing but good news for Prince George.
As the population continues to abandon rural communities across Canada for the bright lights of the major urban centres, the future of small northern towns like Burns Lake are in question. Governments need to invest in the long-term health of these communities if they want employers to make similar investments in resource development.
In Vancouver or Kelowna or even Prince George, an operating room is just the venue for health service.
In a town as vulnerable as Burns Lake, it's not an exaggeration to say the existence of an operating room is life or death, not just to the people needing care, but to the entire community.
