To Surrey City Council and the City of Surrey:

As a local business owner with an office in Surrey, I care about the health and well-being of the residents, workers, families and customers who make up this growing community.

I appreciate the City’s efforts to improve access to community medical services through city-supported clinics. However, clinic hours should reflect when people need medical care most—particularly during evenings and weekends, when many family doctors and walk-in clinics are closed.

People who develop a non-life-threatening medical problem after regular clinic hours may have few options other than visiting a hospital emergency department or waiting until the following day. This can be especially difficult for seniors, families with children, shift workers and people who do not have a family doctor.

We respectfully ask Surrey City Council to:

1. Conduct a formal and public review of the operating hours of city-supported medical clinics.
2. Introduce a six-month pilot program at one suitable Surrey clinic, providing evening service until midnight and appropriate weekend coverage.
3. Consider operating hours such as 4:00 p.m. to midnight, where these hours would complement existing daytime medical services.
4. Work with Fraser Health, clinic operators and healthcare professionals to determine which non-emergency and urgent primary-care services can safely be provided during extended hours.
5. Publish the pilot program’s results, including patient demand, operating costs, wait times, services provided and any effect on avoidable emergency-department visits.

IMPORTANT CLARIFICATION

This petition is not asking medical clinics to replace hospital emergency departments. Anyone experiencing a serious or life-threatening emergency should call 911 or visit an emergency department.

The purpose of this petition is to provide a more accessible evening option for appropriate, non-life-threatening medical concerns. Extended clinic hours could improve access to timely care and may help reduce unnecessary pressure on hospital emergency departments.

A carefully planned and properly evaluated pilot program would allow the City to determine whether extended hours are practical, effective and supported by the community.

If the Surrey pilot demonstrates improved access to evening medical care and responsible use of public resources, its results could provide a model for other municipalities and health authorities across British Columbia to consider.

Please sign and share this petition to ask Surrey City Council to review the current clinic hours and pilot extended clinic services until midnight at an appropriate Surrey location.