No doctors at Lower Mainland ER Sunday night

An entrance to Mission Memorial Hospital is seen on Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. (CTV)

Due to a lack of available physicians, there will be a “temporary service interruption” in the emergency department at Mission Memorial Hospital in B.C.’s Lower Mainland Sunday night.

Anyone who arrives in the emergency room after 5 p.m. will not be seen by a doctor, Fraser Health said in a memo sent at 1 p.m. Those who arrive before that time will be seen by a physician before they end their shift at 11 p.m.

After that, there will be no doctors in the ER but nurses will be on-staff to “support walk-in patients needing basic care, assist with re-direction of care, and/or transfer patients with urgent needs to a neighbouring hospital.”

Fraser Health asked anyone experiencing a life-threatening emergency to call 911 for transport to the “nearest available and appropriate facility.”

The “service interruption” is scheduled to last until 8 a.m. Monday.

“All other Fraser Health Emergency Departments remain open and have emergency physicians on site; however, high numbers of people seeking care and human resources challenges at many of our hospital emergency departments may lead to longer wait times for patients with non-urgent care concerns,” the health authority wrote.

Mission Memorial Hospital’s ER has diverted patients at least three times this year. While ER closures are a common occurrence in B.C.’s smaller communities, staffing issues have begun periodically disrupting service at Vancouver-area hospitals in recent years.