Ridge Meadows maternity unit to temporarily close for 4th time this year

A shortage of OBGYNs continues to affect service at two Lower Mainland hospitals run by the Fraser Health Authority.

Once again, the maternity unit at Maple Ridge’s Ridge Meadows Hospital will temporarily close its doors through this weekend.

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From Thursday, Feb. 26, at 8 a.m. until Monday, March 2, at 8 a.m., expectant parents will be diverted to other care facilities.

Thursday will mark the second such closure at Ridge Meadows Hospital this month, and the fourth this year. Meanwhile, White Rock’s Peace Arch Hospital has also closed its maternity unit four times since the start of the year.

The health authority has been warning of potential shortages at both locations since early December 2025, citing earlier “unexpected departures” by OBGYNs, leaving the hospitals short on coverage.

“If you are in labour or have a pregnancy concern, please call the Maternity Unit first. Our staff will direct you to the appropriate hospital for care,” said Fraser Health in a post to social media.

Its website says the health authority has recruited six OBGYNs to its hospitals in the region over the past year, and is working to recruit more and address service gaps.

“We are pleased to share that we have hired one physician at Peace Arch Hospital who is expected to join the team in Spring 2026.”

The health authority says the timing of future diversions is “dynamic” and may be announced on short notice in reaction to unexpected absences or doctors calling in sick.

Fraser Health says the region it serves is facing some of the same challenges as the rest of the province and Canada:

“Fewer local family physicians offering maternity care, a decline in midwives providing full antepartum–intrapartum–postpartum services, and the increasing complexity of maternity cases.”

Last week, amid a closure at Peace Arch Hospital, Doctors of BC President Dr. Adam Thompson told 1130 NewsRadio that people can expect more service gaps at hospitals around the province as B.C. struggles with a major shortage of frontline health-care workers.

“This is a province-wide problem. We’re seeing a shortage of OBGYN providers, but also a shortage of midwives, maternity nurses, as well as family physicians doing less maternity work than they used to. So, there are a number of different challenges that are reaching a point where we’re struggling to provide care in the province, sadly,” said Thompson.

Thompson explains that B.C. needs to plan and implement a way to stabilize and end the rolling closures, but that hasn’t happened yet.

He says one of the biggest obstacles is graduating more doctors.

“We’re just not producing enough physicians. Full-stop.”

Thompson urged patients facing service gaps at their local health-care facility not to hesitate to seek care, even if it means being diverted.

—With files from Sonia Aslam