The Emergency Physician Resource Team (EPRT) provides short-term physician coverage to high-need hospitals to keep Emergency Departments open and accessible to communities while permanent physician recruitment and other options for local coverage are pursued.

The program leverages existing provincial capacity, engaging Emergency Physicians from across British Columbia who can fulfill commitments to hospitals where they regularly work while devoting additional time to assisting other high-need locations. Physicians with appropriate licenses and qualifications who normally live and work outside of B.C. may participate as well.

The EPRT provides an avenue for participating physicians to make a real difference for communities in need. Physicians gain access to exciting work opportunities in diverse environments and are compensated for their flexibility and willingness to work where they are needed on dates they commit to in advance.

Eligibility for the EPRT program requires:

• Have an active BC License
• Certified as CCFP (EM), FRCPC EM or have extensive experience in emergency medicine
• Holds a Provisional or Active staff position in at least one HA (if a resident of BC). This generally means being in a full-time/permanent role and indicates that the member has been with the HA for a significant period. This also means that they have undergone routine evaluations through reappointment and/or a multi-source review to qualify for promotion to Active status.

*Please note you do not need to be a resident of BC to qualify for the EPRT program.

Refer to our Emergency Physician Resource Team page and Frequently Asked Questions pages for more information or send an email to ecbc.eprt@phsa.ca, and a member of the EPRT team will get right back to you.

Interested in booking your own locum shifts directly with a regional health authority? Join the ECBC “ED Locum Vacancy Opportunities” mailing list and you will receive a weekly email with an up-to-date list of vacancies in emergency departments across BC. If you see any shifts that interest you, ECBC is happy to connect you with the appropriate health authority coordinator to book.

To join, email us at ecbc@phsa.ca.

Both options offer opportunities to cover shifts at emergency departments across the province. The EPRT program requires that availability is provided by physicians ahead of time, hold that time, and will compensates extra for this.

ED Locum Vacancies is a more flexible alternative to cover last minutes shifts at a site of your choosing when your availability happens to open. EPRT physicians are also very welcome to join the ED Locum Vacancy mailing list if they also wish to pick up last minutes shifts.