The emergency department at the Georges Dumont Hospital is overcrowded and has been for several weeks according to the Vitalite Health Network.
Over the next two weeks, officials are asking people who don’t require urgent care to avoid going to the emergency department whenever possible.
For cases which are not considered urgent, Vitalite is asking people to visit a walk-in clinic, see their family doctor or call Tele-Care 811.
The health network says a variety of factors are at play at the Dumont Hospital including staff shortages, a large number of elderly patients awaiting a nursing home bed and a current high rate of hospitalization.
