No babies are coming out of West Lincoln Memorial Hospital on weekends.
Hamilton Health Sciences announcing last week that the obstectrics department at the hospital is closed on weekends until they can find more nurses.
Co-Chair of Save West Lincoln Memorial Hospital, Cindy Toth says, "It's a gap in service, and as we know babies and emergencies that require operating rooms they don't have schedules you can't really just say hold it we have to take you further down the highway."
The move is being called a safety precaution in case a c-section or other post-birth surgery is required.
Toth adds, "I'm not sure that everything that could be done to bring in operating room nurses has been done. We are actually working very hard now as a community group to see what we can do to attract more nurse candidates."
Hamilton Health Sciences is blaming a nation-wide nursing shortage. They are also offering up to a $30,000 signing bonus for out of province nurses who take a position.
For the time being anyone giving between 3 p.m. Friday and 7 a.m. Monday will be directed to another hospital.