Find a Family Doctor or Nurse Practitioner

In PEI, there is a waiting list to find a new family doctor or nurse practitioner. This waiting list is called the Patient Registry. 

You should join the Patient Registry if:

You are a resident of PEI with a valid PEI Health Card and you:

• do not have a family doctor or nurse practitioner and would like to have one;
• have moved within the province and are looking for a family doctor or nurse practitioner in your new area; or
• are expecting a baby and do not have a family physician or nurse practitioner

Additionally, you should contact the Patient Registry Program if you are on the Patient Registry and:

• your contact information has changed; or
• you have found your own doctor or nurse practitioner.

View Frequently Asked Questions about the Provincial Patient Registry and how to update your information on the Patient Registry.

Provincial Patient Registry Activity - Month to Date and Year to Date

How to see a doctor now

If you need emergency care, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.

For non-urgent care, visit a walk-in clinic. 

If you are unsure what to do, call 811 to speak to a registered nurse for guidance.

You can also access many specialty health services without a referral in PEI, including: 

• mental health supports, 
• sexual health and reproductive services, 
• screening for some cancers, 
• some vaccinations, 
• diabetes support, and more. 

See Find Health Care for a complete list and contact information.

Within a few weeks of registering for the Provincial Patient Registry, you may also be able to see a doctor online. For more information, visit Virtual Health Care for Islanders without a Primary Care Provider.

If you are expecting a baby

If you are expecting a baby and do not have a family physician or nurse practitioner, the Patient Registry will assign you to a family physician or nurse practitioner for your prenatal care only.

How to join the Patient Registry

Complete the Patient Registry Online Application Form, call 1-855-563-2101 (toll-free) or for in-person assistance, visit an Access PEI location. 

You will need your PEI Health Card number to register. If you are registering a household, you will need PEI Health Card numbers for all members.

It will take up to 15 minutes to complete the form, depending on how many people you are registering. 

After you complete the form

Health PEI will send you an email confirming your application was successfully submitted.

The Patient Registry will contact you when a family doctor or nurse practitioner is accepting new patients in your area.

Health PEI encourages family practices to contact the Patient Registry when they are able to welcome new patients. Each family practice can determine how and when they accept new patients into their practice. Working together with the staff at the Patient Registry, together they ensure that they identify and match patients to providers in the most efficient and effective manner.

Patients assigned from the patient registry are assigned in chronological order, so those on the registry the longest within their preferred region are assigned first.

Once you have registered for the Patient Registry, you will be eligible to see a doctor online through Maple. Within a month, you will receive a separate email from Health PEI Maple inviting you to register for Maple for Islanders without a primary care provider. After you receive this email, follow the steps on the Virtual Health Care (Maple) for Islanders without a Family Doctor web page to request to see a doctor online.

Update Your Information on the Patient Registry

In January 2025, an enhanced and modernized Patient Registry was launched, designed to more efficiently match registered applicants with a family physician or nurse practitioner.

Twice a year, Health PEI will send an email to the primary household contact who submitted the original application, requesting an information update to ensure accurate matching with a family physician or nurse practitioner. Recipients can update their information online, call 1-855-563-2101 (toll-free), or visit their nearest Access PEI.

When making the updates, you have two options:

1. Update Existing Information: Update your address, if household members have changed, or you wish to select a different preferred region, or 
2. Confirm No Updates Required: If no updates are needed, please confirm your information. It is important to provide updates even if no changes have been made, to ensure your information remains accurate.

If a household member no longer resides within the household, you must contact the Patient Registry by email at affiliation@ihis.org or by calling 1-855-563-2101. If you are adding a member to your household, you can do so by completing the online form, calling 1-855-563-2101, or visiting an Access PEI location in person.

To update your information easily, whether online, by phone, or in person at Access PEI, have the Health Card for each family member ready. If that’s not possible, you’ll need their Provincial Health Number (PHN) and date of birth.

If you want to confirm you’re registered in the correct region, consult the Provincial Patient Registry Regions Map.

Contact the Patient Registry Program

Telephone: 1-855-563-2101 (toll-free).