An emergency room doctor in Sydney, N.S., is expressing concern about the impact of not having a pediatrician available this weekend, but health officials say a plan is in place to help young patients who need care.

The three pediatricians working in the area are unavailable and a locum cancelled at the last minute.

"We've had several cases this year where we've had to call in the pediatrician to assist with a trauma case," said Dr. Margaret Fraser of the Cape Breton Regional Hospital.

In 2008, Cape Breton had nine pediatricians, says Dr. Margaret Fraser. Today there are three. (CBC)

For the most part, Fraser said children who come to the ER have issues that family doctors can handle, such as gastroenteritis or a bad respiratory infection.

Emergency C-sections

But Fraser said she's concerned about emergency caesarean sections because a pediatrician is needed to care for the baby.

"The babies in emergency C-sections are more complicated," she said. "They may be distressed. They may have some problems breathing and someone needs to be there to take care of that."

Unusual situation

Greg Boone, a spokesperson for the Nova Scotia Health Authority, said in an interview late Friday that a Sydney-based neonatologist will be on call all weekend for obstetrics, including deliveries, and neonatal emergencies.

Lifeflight will also be available to transport emergency cases.

Mickey Daye, the hospital's manager of maternal child care services, said a situation like this has never happened before.

However, he said arrangements have also been made with the on-call pediatrician at St. Martha's Regional Hospital in Antigonish, N.S., to take phone consults.

"Then, if a patient needed to be admitted, they could be admitted to St. Martha's or to the IWK [in Halifax]," said Daye.

3 vacancies

Fraser said when she came to Cape Breton in 2008, there were nine pediatricians. Now there are three who are on call every third weekend.

Daye said the area is allocated six pediatrician positions and three are currently vacant.

One pediatrician has been hired and will start at the end of the summer, he said, and the health authority is trying to recruit two more.