Virtual Emergency Physician program expands to Fort Macleod and Milk River

Scheduled physicians remotely support emergency department patients.

FORT MACLEOD/MILK RIVER — Patients seeking care at the Fort Macleod and Milk River Health Centre emergency departments (EDs) now have additional physician support through Alberta Health Services’ (AHS) Virtual Emergency Physician (VEP) program.

The VEP program uses scheduled, experienced emergency department physicians to remotely support rural facilities. Nursing staff can connect with an AHS physician by telephone or videoconference to assess patients with non-life-threatening conditions. The virtual physician can speak with patients, collaborate with local healthcare teams, order tests and medications, and determine whether a patient can be discharged or needs to be transferred to another facility.

“Generally, many of our emergency department service disruptions occur overnight when the number of patients is lower, and the injuries or illnesses are not as acute and can be easily handled with on-site nursing care and a virtual physician,” says Dr. Jane Ojedokun, Associate Chief Medical Officer, Rural Health Sustainability, AHS.

Since launching in January 2025, the VEP program has supported more than a dozen rural EDs across Alberta and eliminated 98 per cent of emergency department service disruptions. Based on the experience and feedback from rural sites, AHS is continuing to expand the program, with more sites expected to join in the coming months.

“Seeing the data and feedback from VEP support at rural sites throughout the province, we are excited to continue expanding the program to more southern Alberta EDs,” says Dr. Ojedokun. “VEP improves access to care during temporary physician absences while supporting the dedicated healthcare teams that provide exceptional care every day.”

When a patient requires in-person emergency physician care, Emergency Health Services remains available to transfer them to a facility with on-site physician support, as needed.

AHS continues to recruit physicians to provide in-person emergency department support across the province. VEP is one of several tools AHS uses to support rural emergency departments and maintain access to care.

Alberta Health Services provides acute care services for more than five million Albertans at hospitals, urgent care centres and health centres across the province. Our mission is to provide excellent and accessible patient-focused healthcare for all Albertans. Our current focus is on reducing emergency department wait times, increasing access to surgeries and improving patient flow.