Emergency Department Wait Times

At Southlake, we are aware of the frustration that patients and families experience when they do not receive the care that they expect or face lengthy wait times while waiting to be seen in our Emergency Department.

Each year, Southlake’s Emergency Department cares for 72,000 patients; a number that is expected to increase exponentially as our Region continues to grow. However, despite the increased demand on Hospital services, the number of acute care inpatient beds in our Hospital remains the same. Throughout the GTA, there is currently a 90 percent bed occupancy rate, which equates to approximately three available beds for every 11,000 people requiring admission The situation at Southlake is no different.

Pay for Results
How are we doing?
Improving Patient Flow at Southlake
What you can do to reduce wait times

Pay for Results

The four key targets identified by the Emergency Department Wait Time Strategy, also known as “Pay-for-Results” are:

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How are we doing?

Southlake’s funding amount is based on our ability to improve our admitted patient wait times by 9% and non-admitted patient wait times by 3%. Simply put, if we do not meet our targets we will not receive the additional funding to reinvest into patient care.

We have an obligation to provide healthcare services to those who need it in a timely manner. We are committed to improving our wait times and believe in being transparent with our successes, and when required, with our less than impressive performance. Therefore, we are pleased to share the graphs below that outline where we standing in meeting the above targets:

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Improving patient flow in Southlake’s Emergency Department

There are many factors outside of the Hospital’s control that contribute to longer wait times in Southlake’s Emergency Department, including high growth in the area and the aging population.
To improve patient flow throughout the hospital, and subsequently decrease the amount time patients spend waiting for admission, Southlake is currently participating in a major provincial flow improvement project called the Patient Journey-Performance Improvement Program (PJ-PIP). The goal of PJ-PIP is to identify process changes throughout the hospital, which in turn, will address length of stay in the Emergency by improving flow into (and out of) acute care impatient beds. 

To date, Southlake has implemented a number of initiatives aimed specifically at improving efficiencies and moving patients out of the Emergency Department and through the hospital in a timely manner. These initiatives include:

• Upon arriving at the Emergency Department, patients are triaged into appropriate zones of care dependent on their needs. These zones can range from Fast Track (patients assessed at Triage levels 4 and 5 with non-urgent conditions) to trauma (require immediate urgent care). Streamlining patients according to their required care levels allows us to ensure that all patients are seen in a timely manner and receive the appropriate care based on their needs.
  
  
• An Electronic Tracking Board in the Department allows us to visually track each patient’s journey from triage through to admission and/or discharge. The board is used as a notification tool for all members of the healthcare team by clearly identifying the currents status of the patient in their care plan and their next treatment steps, whether that means undergoing additional testing, admission to a bed, or discharge home.
  
  
• A recently-opened Temporary Admission Area allows us to move those patients who may require admission out of the Emergency Department and into a temporary area to wait while additional testing is being completed, or for a specialist consult to take place. This allows for beds within the Emergency Department to become free for those still waiting to be assessed by a physician in the Emergency Department.
  
  
• To ensure patients waiting in the Emergency Department are seen more quickly, efforts have been made in the Emergency Department to increase physician staffing during peak hours. An added number of volunteers have also been put in place to improve communication with patients and to ensure patients receive a higher level of social support and comfort while waiting to be seen by a doctor.
  
  
• To help move patients from the Emergency Department and into a hospital bed more quickly, Southlake has a daily discharge time of 10 a.m. for those patients who no longer require hospitalization. Those patients who cannot arrange a ride for 10:00 a.m. will be transferred to a Patient Discharge Lounge to wait until a family member or friend can pick them up.

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What you can do to help reduce wait times

Although Southlake makes every effort to reduce wait times, there are things that you, the patient, can do to decrease that amount of time you are waiting in our Emergency Department:

• If you are sent to the Emergency Department by your doctor or from a clinic, be insistent on receiving a referral letter to bring with you upon arrival. This may help to reduce treatment time as it provides staff and physicians with a clear idea of your symptoms and the referring physician’s concerns.
  
  
• Each and every time you visit the Hospital, bring a detailed list of medications you are currently taking. The list should include all prescription, over-the-counter and recreational substances, as well as the dosage and frequency in which you take them.
  
  
• If at all possible, plan to come to the Emergency Department during off-peak hours (11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.) as this could potentially reduce your wait time. Many patients wait until Monday morning at 9:00 a.m. to come to the Emergency department, which ultimately can result in longer waits.
  
  
• Seasonal variances (ie. flu outbreaks in the winter) may create more traffic in the Emergency Department than in other seasons. Unfortunately, our bed count does not vary based on outbreaks. The winter months are always busier as many people are suffering from severe cold and flu symptoms. In summer, sick counts drop significantly and as a result, the waiting room is less busy.
  
  
• Even though the waiting room may appear empty that does not mean that there will not be a wait. Our physicians may already be occupied with a trauma or other seriously ill patient and still may take some time before they are available to see you.   Our physicians work hard to ensure that you are treated as soon as possible. Patients are treated based on their level of acuity, and not their time of arrival.
   
• Be sure to make appropriate arrangements to ensure you can leave the hospital as soon as possible after discharge. This means ensuring you have appropriate transportation or a family member who can take you home. Patients who cannot arrange a ride upon discharge will be transferred to the Discharge Lounge to wait until they can arrange a ride home.

Looking Ahead

These initiatives mark only the beginning of improvements being made in Southlake’s Emergency Department. More projects are scheduled to be implemented in the coming months which will be aimed at improving patient flow and ultimately, patient satisfaction for both the patient and family. We encourage you to visit our website often to receive regular updates as we move forward.

For information on resources available to you during your hospital visit or stay (for example, parking, what to bring, discharge times and other helpful information) please click on Patient and Visitors.

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