More covid rebellion: Unvaccinated nurses open wellness centre in Kamloops, B.C. - UPDATE: Nurses evicted

Amandalina Letterio
Global News
Fri, 29 Oct 2021 14:42 UTC

© Tim Petruk

A user-pay wellness clinic was opened by a group of unvaccinated nurses October 29, 2021 in North Kamloops, British Columbia

Unvaccinated nurses all over the province are no longer permitted to work for British Columbia health authorities.

A group of Kamloops nurses who did not receive the COVID-19 vaccine is using their job loss as an opportunity to start up Ezra Wellness on Tranquille Road.

"We're not being allowed to help. We were told we weren't wanted, we weren't needed — and yet, we know we are," said team lead Glenn Aalderink.

Ezra Wellness is still developing its platform, but the clinic says it hopes to ease some of the strain on emergency rooms by assessing patients and offering guidance. It will operate as a private clinic and, as of right now, services are free and nurses are volunteering.

"I saw that there was going to be a need for those of us who choose not to follow the official mandates — to seek their own health care," Aalderink said.

Unvaccinated or vaccinated, Aalderink says everyone is welcome at Ezra Wellness. He says the goal was to create a safe space for unvaccinated people to receive health care.

In an email to CFJC News, Interior Health says its services are also available to everyone.

© Radio NL /PNG

Glenn Aalderink at Ezra Wellness in Kamloops is one of a team of nurses who started the clinic on a volunteer basis when unvaccinated health-care workers were put on unpaid leave.

"We are committed to supporting all patients, residents and clients regardless of vaccination status. The vaccine mandates are specific to health care works to keep all the people we serve safe," the Health Authority said.

Aalderink says the unvaccinated nurses are heartbroken.

"We're here because we want to be. What we have is an overpowering desire, calling, to help our fellow humans," he said.

Aalderink says walking away from health care was hard, but he stands by his decision — and he's excited about his new venture.

"I know I'm risking catching COVID. I know that I won't have whatever protection this injection gives you. But I've weighed the risks for myself and I am satisfied with my decision," he added.

Comment: Castanet follows up:

An unvaccinated nurse who opened a user-pay wellness clinic this week in North Kamloops says plans are in place for similar storefronts to debut soon in Kelowna and Salmon Arm.

Glenn Aalderink, a former Royal Inland Hospital nurse who organized a well-attended Sept. 1 anti-vax rally on Columbia Street, told Castanet he opened the doors to Ezra Wellness on Tuesday.

He said it's not a medical clinic and it does not offer medical care.

"At best, I'd say consultation. A lot of it is just we evaluate, we have a discussion and we see where we can go and what might potentially work," he said.

"So if you came in and you had questions, we would help place you or point you in the direction of what we think — collectively, you and I — would be best, through all modalities like massage, nutrition, naturopath, Western medicine. It's whatever we think would help you, even personal trainers."

Interior Health confirmed it is aware of Ezra Wellness, but a spokesperson said IH "does not oversee private clinics providing medical services." The health authority said anyone working in healthcare has to follow provincial rules — and anyone caught breaking them could be penalized.

"All individuals providing medical care in B.C. are required to comply with the BC Health Professionals Act," IH said in a statement to Castanet.

"If we receive information about a clinic that may be operating outside of this, we will report individuals involved to their respective professional regulating bodies — the BC College of Nurses and Midwives for nurses and BC College of Physicians and Surgeons for physicians."

IH said any concerned individual is free to file such a report.

According to Aalderink, Ezra Wellness has another location in Grand Forks and is about to open clinics in Kelowna and Salmon Arm. Others are in the works, he said, in Langley, Northern B.C., Alberta, Ontario and Australia.

The College of Nurses is watchful, but not making any trouble yet:

The B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives, which regulates licenses for nurses in the province, has concerns about misinformation that could come from these clinics.

"(The College) and other health profession regulators in B.C. share serious concerns about how the spread of misinformation by regulated health professionals about COVID-19 and vaccination may jeopardize the safety of patients and the public," spokesperson Johanna Ward said in an emailed statement. "We also have concerns about regulated health professionals promoting or sharing information about COVID-19 treatments that are not supported by widely accepted scientific evidence."

Ward said nurses can own and operate their own clinics as long as they follow bylaws, standards of practice and work within their scope of practice.

The College also recommends those nurses seek legal advice.

Although Aalderink's employment with Interior Health was terminated, he still holds his license with the B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives. He is also trying to communicate with the College to cooperate in order to allow the clinic to operate.

He said there are at least 40 other healthcare workers that are willing to collaborate with him, including former Interior Health nurses, chiropractors and naturopaths.

There is no examination room and only space for consultations behind a desk, but Aalderink said he can check basic vital statistics and will be willing to make house calls.

"This is the first time I've been building something. Everything else is trying to hold my line in society. Society has proven they don't want us," he said. "(The College) can take away my license to practice but not my skills."

UPDATE 03/11/2021: The Vancouver Sun reported that the clinic is being evicted by the building's owner:

A private health clinic that was started by unvaccinated nurses last week in Kamloops has been evicted by the owner of the building.

In a Facebook post, Ezra Wellness in Kamloops says it's looking for support to find another place to operate.

© Glenn Aalderink/Facebook

"If you have or know of some office space available, with like minded compassionate owners, please let me know so we can land and move forward peacefully," Glenn Aalderink, the nurse who started the clinic, said in the post.

The post said when the provincial government ordered all health-care workers to be vaccinated, he "moved on" and created an alternative clinic.

"The landlord does not want us, we will move on and find an alternative. And they will suffer for the loss, not us," said Aalderink.

The building is owned by Brendan Shaw of SRSN Ventures Ltd.

In an email, he said the commercial space is rented to a long-term tenant who subleased part of their space to a user-pay medical clinic without the permission of the owner.

"We have a no sublease clause in place and this is not an allowable option," said Shaw.

"With each of our commercial tenants, we have a process we follow to vet and approve all tenants. Part of that due diligence process is to ensure all tenants are able to meet the legal, financial, and insurance covenants on the commercial space. Without having gone through this process and because we have a no sublease clause in place, we cannot reasonably give approval on a lease."