‘Patients who need more intense care will be stabilized and safely transferred to the QEH’
May 15, 2023
A shortage of internal medicine specialists has led to the closure of the intensive care unit at the Prince County Hospital in Summerside, P.E.I.
In an emailed statement to CBC News, Health P.E.I. said the ICU has been transitioned into a progressive care unit. An ICU requires the presence of internal medicine staff around the clock, the email said, but a PCU can be operated by family physicians, hospitalists and nursing staff.
Patients who require intensive care will be stabilized and transferred to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown.
“Our health-care system is responding to the greatest staffing challenges we have seen as a province,” said Health P.E.I. CEO Dr. Michael Gardam.
“While our intention is to increase services available at PCH over the long term, we need to make these changes now to maintain safe care for Islanders in the face of shortages in physicians, nurses and many other health-care professions.”
Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-prince-county-hospital-icu-closed-1.6843556