Did we mention this idyllic town was wiped out by a fire? Job posting for doctor omits this 'minor' detail

The southern B.C. village of Lytton was razed to the ground by a wildfire last year. Yet anyone reading a job posting for a family physician published recently by the province’s Interior Health ministry might have thought the community of about 250 residents had somehow returned to its former idyllic state. That’s because the job posting—which has since been revised—painted a picture of a scenic town with affordable homes and a health centre where the successful applicant would be posted. Except that health centre was among the buildings and homes destroyed completely in the inferno, which caused an estimated $78 million in damages. “Perhaps Interior Health is still unaware that the downtown core of the Village of Lytton was burnt to the ground during the June 30, 2021, Lytton Creek wildfire,” complained Tricia Thorpe, who lost her house and a beloved dog to the fire. Read: When the worst happens This lack of awareness may also be why basic health services are currently not available to the Lytton community, Thorpe was quoted in an Alaska Highway News report. When her husband had a heart attack in April, Thorpe had to drive him to Lillooet, about an hour’s drive away. A health clinic was opened recently in Lytton. But doctors are onsite only for two of every four weeks, and only for limited hours. “The only tools they have at their disposal so far are prescription pads and they can send lab requests to Lillooet,” said Thorpe, who has been lobbying for better emergency care in Lytton. “That’s it—there’s no emergency supplies, there's no equipment, there’s no lab, we still don’t have an ambulance.” While she was happy to see the province recruiting for a town doctor, Thorpe was not pleased with the wording. So she complained to local and provincial officials. She said another community member also contacted Interior Health about its tone-deaf posting, which described Lytton as the “rafting capital of Canada.” The complaints clearly worked. The revised posting referred to a “devastating wildfire in summer 2021” and talked of the eagerness of Lytton residents to rebuild “and return the community to its former vibrant state. Read: Amid wildfires and devastation, B.C. pharmacist dispenses medicine—and kindness

Did we mention this idyllic town was wiped out by a fire? Job posting for doctor omits this 'minor' detail

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