Gatineau Hospital ER reopened, but only for pregnancies, children, urgent mental health cases

The Gatineau Hospital's emergency room is back open, but only partially.

The Outaouais Integrated Health and Social Services Centre (CISSS) says it was able to differ some specialized health care workers to the ER but they will only be able to treat three specific types of cases: pregnancies, children between 0-17, and urgent mental health cases.

All other emergency patients will continue to be differed to either the Hull or Papineau (Buckingham) hospitals.

The Gatineau Hospital ER closure was announced in the evening hours of Friday, June 25, due to a lack of nurses. At the time, the emergency department was only expected to stay closed through the weekend.

The CISSS then added an additional 48 hours to be able to reopen “in a secure manner.”

The CISSS de l'Outaouais said in a translated news release on Monday that “it is aware that this situation is worrying for the population and for the Outaouais and is working closely to reopen the service as soon as possible.”