Patients at West Nipissing General Hospital in Sturgeon Falls, Ont., may experience longer wait times starting Jan. 6 due to a major construction project.

The hospital is relocating its emergency department to the current operating room area while renovations are carried out to comply with Ministry of Health directives. This final phase of the project includes sprinkler system upgrades in the emergency department.

"We are just asking patients coming to our emergency department to be patient," said Shelli Fielding Levac, the hospital's vice-president of clinical services and chief nursing executive. "There will be proper signage and support to guide them to the temporary emergency department."

Fielding Levac also encourages people to consider alternatives if their situation isn't urgent.

"If patients do not feel they need to be seen in the emergency department, please consider seeing your family physician or nurse practitioner."

The construction is expected to last about eight weeks and may impact wait times during the transition and beyond.

"We are bringing in extra staff and having a physician stay longer to help with the move," Fielding Levac said. "As we transfer patients already in the emergency department and admit new ones in the temporary location, we anticipate wait times may be a little longer."

The hospital will inform the public when the emergency department is ready to move back to its original location.