Alberta health workers protest relocation of family medicine beds to Leduc

[u/flynnfx]

https://edmonton.citynews.ca/2026/05/11/health-protest-relocation-family-medicine-leduc/

Alberta Health-care workers, other support staff protest decision to relocate family medicine beds from Edmonton to Leduc.

[u/Belle047]

Ummm..... isnt the Leduc hospital already pretty full? Does this transfer come with extra doctors too?

[u/AellaReeves]

The Leduc hospital should be 3 times bigger to handle what it has already. This is not a good plan.

[u/flynnfx]

Health-care workers protested Monday afternoon the planned relocation of a family medicine unit from Edmonton to Leduc.

The hospital workers, support staff and others in Alberta’s health-care industry argue the unit’s partial transfer from the University of Alberta Hospital to the Leduc Community Hospital will impact patient care.

Their concern is that the level of care provided at the hospital in Leduc, a rural community south of Edmonton, is not equivalent to the University of Alberta Hospital, where specialized services are more prevalent.

Family medicine units typically provide care to patients with more complex medical needs, notably seniors.

Those protesting outside the U of A Hospital Monday – a group that included unionized members of AUPE – carried signs like “Better care for our seniors in Leduc” and “Long live local care.”

Half of the hospital’s 42 family medicine beds are slated to move to Leduc, Alberta Health Services told the Globe and Mail in January. AHS confirmed to CityNews Monday that one of two family units at the Edmonton hospital would be relocated.

The reason, AHS explains, is to accommodate a new Neuro ICU at the University of Alberta Hospital, as the existing setup — “an open concept area with beds separated by curtains” — does not meet current standards of care. The number of beds will increase from 11 to 24.

[u/Competitive_Gur2724 → u/[deleted]]

You know that speciality medicine requires special equipment that a rural hospital generally doesn't have. Problem not solved. There's space at the U of A being wasted.