Horizon officials estimate the province’s plan to add hundreds of nursing home beds won’t provide significant relief for medically discharged patients.
To help relieve strained emergency departments, the government unveiled a long-term care strategy in late May, promising 624 new nursing home beds.
By 2027, 240 of those beds will come from expansions to existing Shannex homes, including 120 in Fredericton, 60 in Riverview and 60 in Quispamsis.
At the latest public meeting, Horizon vice-president of clinical operations Greg Doiron said while the additional beds are welcome, they will not meaningfully reduce the number of patients waiting in hospital for long-term care.
“In our Horizon catchment area, we believe will benefit from approximately 120 of those beds,” he said. “That will have meaningful impact, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg.”
Doiron said that by the time the beds open, the number of patients is expected to grow to a point where the additions “won’t have a material impact” on the overall percentage of alternate-level care (ALC) patients.
The health network recently reached a new high, with ALC patients — those medically discharged but waiting for placement — occupying 42 per cent, or 720 beds, nearly two weeks ago. That surpasses the previous peak of 40 per cent recorded in June 2025.
Doiron said the shortage of nursing home spaces continues to strain emergency departments, reducing available capacity and contributing to crowded hospital units, long wait times and delayed admissions.
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For example, at Saint John Regional Hospital, Doiron said it is not uncommon to see ALC patients occupying 20 of the facility’s 35 beds, limiting capacity to provide services to incoming patients who need it the most.
“The demand for both health care and long-term care continues to grow, and as a result, given the lack of resources for community supports for long-term care today, we are seeing an increasing amount of pressure in the acute care setting,” he added.
Doiron said Horizon is currently focusing on strategies to prevent avoidable hospital admissions, decrease length of stay and improve internal flow.
Some of those initiatives include the addition of three patient flow centres, located in Moncton, Fredericton and Miramichi — a model aimed at bringing care partners together in one space to enable smoother patient transition and more efficient discharge planning.
Other initiatives include:
• a new discharge lounge at Saint John Regional Hospital to help transitions from the facility to home; long-term care assessments within five hospitals, with Social Development partners integrated into in-hospital teams to streamline the process
• emergency department diversion teams to identify resources patients can benefit from at home in the community — helping avoid unnecessary hospital admissions
• a discharge-to-assess pilot to identify resources that allow the hospital to discharge patients who have already been admitted for some time, reassess their needs, and determine what additional support can be provided to help them return home
• plans to transform current in-hospital care environments to make them more appropriate continuing-care environments, aiming to provide more dignified and appropriate care for patients waiting for long-term care placements
Some of the initiatives are already underway and making progress, Doiron said. For example, diversion teams have helped avoid more than 460 hospital admissions, saving more than 8,000 patient days and ensuring hospital resources are available for those who need them the most, he explained.
“While the challenges remain, we are encouraged by the progress being made by our teams with their continued commitment to putting patients first,” Doiron added. “Through collaboration and innovation, we’re strengthening our system and building a healthier future for New Brunswickers.”
Additionally, the network announced at its previous board meeting in late May that it was looking to identify space to include 180 nursing home beds across its hospitals in the coming year.
Horizon estimates 60 beds would be allocated in Fredericton, 60 in Saint John, 40 in Moncton and 20 in Miramichi.
