Saskatoon City Hospital increases hours for emergency department

The Saskatoon City Hospital is increasing the hours of operation for its emergency department from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The new schedule begins June 29. It follows several months of reduced hours at the emergency department, which was only operational from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. 

The hospital says the hours have expanded because the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) has made progress in stabilizing physician staffing, and is now taking a "phased approach" to resuming full-time hours. 

The introduction of 109 new acute care beds at the hospital is also still underway. The initiative, funded by an SHA infusion of $15 million, began in March 2025 and is expected to take 12 to 16 months. 

Understaffing has been a persistent issue at Saskatoon hospitals. On New Year's Eve 2024, the emergency department temporarily reduced its hours to just 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., saying some of its doctors were sick. 

In May 2025, emergency room patients at the Royal University Hospital and St. Paul's Hospital were forced to be treated in hallways and waiting rooms due to lack of available space.

Alongside the increased hours at the Saskatoon City Hospital, the emergency departments at the Royal University Hospital and St Paul's Hospital remain open to the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week.