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SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The Spokane Veterans Affairs Medical Center will close its emergency room in the overnight hours beginning Dec. 1.
The VA Northwest Health Network says it's a temporary reduction due to a shortage of ER doctors.
Spokeswoman Megan Crowley in Vancouver tells The Spokesman-Review (http://bit.ly/13MjqPf ) the VA hopes to hire more doctors and reopen the emergency department 24 hours a day in the spring.
Starting in December, the emergency department in Spokane will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Crowley says veterans who need care when the department is closed should call 911 or go to another hospital.
The Spokane VA emergency department typically handles about 17,000 patients a year.
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