Northern B.C. has been hit hard by emergency closures again this summer. Between July 22 to July 28, there was at least one ER service interruption per day in the northern half of the province, prompting rallies in parts of the region.

The ER at the largest hospital in the area — serving nearly 30,000 residents — was shuttered five times in just one week.

But the crisis is also playing out country-wide, with no clear solutions in sight.

"There continue to be just unprecedented numbers of emergency department closures," said Natalie Mehra, executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition, an advocacy group that released last year's headline-making tally of shutdowns in the province.