DANVILLE, Va — Pregnant women planning to give birth soon at SOVAH Health in Danville may need a backup plan. The hospital has announced that it will not have pediatric and labor delivery coverage over the weekend.

SOVAH Danville said this comes after an unexpected medical emergency that affected one of their temporary providers.

This means that if someone goes into labor in the next few days, they will have to go to another hospital.

“Physicians Locums provide specialty coverage when permanent providers are not available to cover calls and despite our diligent efforts to secure additional coverage, as soon as we were notified of the gap, there were no other providers available to this weekend,” SOVAH Health Danville said. in a statement.

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If an expectant mother comes in for the weekend, SOVAH said they will evaluate and treat them as much as they can. If necessary, they will take them to another hospital for care. That could mean traveling to Lynchburg, Roanoke or Greensboro to give birth.

“SOVAH Health is coordinating closely with local healthcare providers and emergency services to minimize disruption, and we are working diligently to resume normal services as quickly and efficiently as possible,” the hospital told ABC13.

As of now, it is set for Monday, November 4th at 7am

“We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate the community’s understanding and support as we work through this situation,” they added.

Danville OBGYN Associates said in a Facebook post that they offered the option of having their nurse midwives provide care for the newborn — but the hospital declined.

“We appreciate the offer made by OBGYN Associates, however, that option would have care limited to their established patients only, excluding patients who see other healthcare providers,” SOVAH wrote in a statement. “While women’s care providers bring valuable experience, newborn care has traditionally been provided and overseen by pediatricians to maintain the highest standards of care, and that remains our expectation today. While this situation is not what any of us wanted, our priority continues to be the safety and well-being of our patients.”

Scheduled inductions have been rescheduled for next week and SOVAH urges any patient experiencing a medical emergency to go to the nearest emergency room.