Hospitals on Prince Edward Island are operating at above‑normal capacity, and Health P.E.I. has triggered overcapacity protocols that have affected services across the island. Starting Jan. 11, 2026, the emergency department at Kings County Memorial Hospital (KCMH) in Montague will operate Monday through Friday only — its normal weekday hours (8 a.m. to 8 p.m.) will remain unchanged — and Saturday service will be paused.
The emergency department has been closed on Sundays and Health P.E.I. said it will reassess the situation in April 2026.
Health officials say a “triple threat” of seasonal respiratory illnesses — influenza, COVID‑19 and RSV — together with shortages of emergency physicians and nurses, and a bottleneck of patients awaiting long‑term care placements (Alternate Level of Care or ALC patients) have put pressure on local wards. Health P.E.I. has pointed to staffing challenges in eastern P.E.I. as a reason for pausing weekend service and has been pursuing measures such as locum incentives and hiring additional full‑time ER physicians to stabilize staffing.
With Saturday service paused at the Montague emergency department, residents who need emergency care on weekends may need to travel to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown — roughly a 40–45 minute drive (about 47 km) from Montague depending on conditions. Health P.E.I. says the temporary Monday‑to‑Friday schedule is intended to give more predictability for the community and the staffing roster while longer‑term solutions are developed.
Local leaders and health officials are asking Islanders for patience as wait times increase and hospital staff manage heavier workloads. For concerns that are not true emergencies, Health P.E.I. and media reporting encourage residents to seek care from community clinics, pharmacists where appropriate, or through the province’s virtual care arrangements (including the Maple service, which is available to Islanders through Health P.E.I.’s virtual‑care program for those without a family doctor). For life‑threatening emergencies, residents should call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
