‘You don’t know what will happen’: Another maternity ward diversion begins at Peace Arch Hospital

Two maternity wards in the Fraser Health region are closed to patients after Peace Arch Hospital in White Rock began its latest diversion Tuesday morning.

Ridge Meadows Hospital has been diverting pregnant patients since April 2.

“As a last resort, when physicians are unavailable to fill the gaps in the obstetrics/gynecology schedule, we implement a maternity diversion to support safe, uninterrupted care for our patients,” the health authority says on the page of its website dedicated to the closures.

“We are working hard to find solutions. Significant efforts continue as we work collaboratively with our physician groups at both sites to find short and long-term solutions, including appealing to locum physicians across the region and province.”

Ridge Meadows is scheduled to reopen on Friday at 8 a.m., while Peace Arch is scheduled to reopen on April 14, also at 8 a.m.

During the closures, families expecting to give birth at the hospitals in question will instead be “guided to another maternity site” to deliver their babies, Fraser Health says.

“We know this update may cause concern as you prepare for your baby’s arrival,” the health authority adds.

“We are truly sorry for any added stress this may bring. The most important thing is a safe delivery for both parent and baby, and these steps are in place to ensure you receive safe, uninterrupted care.”

It’s far from the first time these two hospitals have faced maternity ward diversions. In January, interim B.C. Conservative Leader Trevor Halford estimated that the White Rock facility had been closed every other week, on average, since the previous month.

Fraser Health describes the diversions as “temporary” and says they’ve been caused by “unexpected departures of OB-GYNs” at the two hospitals in 2025.

Peace Arch, however, has dealt with maternity ward closures in the past, with a notable string of such incidents in 2021 and 2022.

Nicoleta Maan—who first spoke to CTV News in February, voicing her concerns over the potential of another diversion at that time—says she was able to get into Peace Arch when her water broke on Feb. 18, just one day before another diversion began.

“I was like, ‘Oh my God, we need to go to the hospital.’ I knew the maternity clinic would go on diversion the next day, and that was a little bit panicking. I was like, ‘If I go now and they send me home, what will I do?” she told CTV News Tuesday.

Maan says she was the only patient remaining in the ward the next day, when she gave birth to her son Zor.

She commends the treatment her family received from the doctors and nurses who took care of them, but hopes the province will do more to ensure other women in similar positions don’t have to endure the same stress.

“I was in their shoes and (I know) how worried you can be. You don’t know what will happen,” she said.

The health authority maintains that it is “dedicated to delivering sustainable maternity services” at both hospitals and is working to recruit physicians to fill the gaps in the schedule on both an interim and a long-term basis.

One new physician is expected to begin working at Peace Arch Hospital next month, and Fraser Health says it is currently interviewing candidates for two additional maternity positions at the facility.

“Over the past year, we have recruited six obstetrician-gynecologists to work at our hospitals across the region, helping to ensure adequate resources are in place for all communities we serve,” the health authority says.