The Hinton Healthcare Centre won't have on-site physician coverage for its emergency department for Sunday or Monday night (Dec. 1 and 2) from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.
The temporary disruption is due to an inability to secure physician coverage, according to Alberta Health Services. If coverage is found, the disruption will be cancelled.
Nursing staff will still be available to provide triage, assessments and referrals to alternate emergency departments in neighbouring communities as needed.
EMS will remain available, and patients should call 911 if they have a medical emergency or 811 for non-emergency questions related to health.
This is one of many service interruptions that have occurred at the Hinton Healthcare Centre over the past year. In late June, Hinton council declared a local health care crisis due to a shortage of healthcare workers.
The provincial government has pledged to recruit more doctors to Hinton. In October, it announced a $16-million bursary program to attract more doctors to rural areas in Alberta.
