Ontario ER Patients Waiting 45 Hours, Leaked Report Suggests

Ontario’s health care system is in major trouble, according to a new leaked report. A Liberal MPP and health critic has shared the report which states patients are having to wait up to 45 hours to complete their visit. The report also mentions that patients arriving via ambulance must wait significantly longer for a bed compared to last year.

Liberal health critic Dr. Adil Shamji obtained a report that reveals the state Ontario’s hospitals are in. “Health-care performance is continuing its dramatic nosedive and unfortunately is now in freefall,” he said. The report allegedly states in September, 90 percent of patients had to wait 12 hours in an emergency room which was a 17 percent increase in wait time compared to September 2021. After admission, it took 45 hours to complete the visit for 90 percent of the patients. This was a 40.5 percent increase compared to last year.

Furthermore, patients who are brought to the hospital in an ambulance have to wait up to 90 minutes to get a bed which is 50 percent more waiting time compared to last year.

Shamji called out Ford’s government for claiming everything is under control when hospitals are in such a condition. On top of that, there has also been a surge in pediatric patients in recent months which has put children’s hospitals under a lot of stress. “Against this backdrop, the Ford government continues to insist that it has everything under control as things slip further and further out of their grasp,” Shamji says.

He added, “(Masking) would be very effective in curbing the spread of these respiratory viruses and decreasing the burden on our health-care system.” Shamji also asked the government to share more real-time data on the situation. Notably, the report also points out that the overall volume of patients visiting emergency rooms is less than last year, yet wait times are drastically higher.

Dr. Amit Arya, a GTA hospital physician, notes these conditions point toward a collapsing system. He points out that there is a major shortage of nurses which he calls unsustainable and unsafe. The province is still short 30,000 nurses, according to the physician, and this issue can be solved by repealing Bill 124 which caps wage increases for nurses at one percent annually.

Vineet Washington