Most Hamilton emergency departments have longer wait times than nearby hospitals, analysis shows

Most emergency departments in Hamilton have a longer wait time than most other hospitals between Burlington and Niagara, according to a CBC Hamilton analysis of provincial data.

The province collects monthly data on how long it takes for people to get a first assessment in the emergency department after being triaged or registering.

CBC Hamilton took 12 months worth of data and calculated the average wait time for each local hospital in that span.

Juravinski Hospital had the longest wait time among the 11 hospitals with emergency departments in the area.

People had to wait roughly three hours for a first assessment, which is an hour more than the provincial average.

St. Catharines General Hospital, Brantford General Hospital, Hamilton General Hospital and McMaster Children's Hospital were all at least a two and a half hour wait on average.

The latter two hospitals, like Juravinski, are part of Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS). That means all HHS locations with emergency departments had wait times longer than the provincial average.

But Juravinski had far fewer patients arriving at the emergency department compared to other hospitals in the top five with longest wait times.

For example, Juravinski had an average of 2,949 patients per month compared to Niagara Health's St. Catharines General Hospital, which had an average of 5,304 patients, the highest average of any hospital on the list.

St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton Charlton site had the shortest wait time — just over an hour — despite having the second-highest patient volume, with 4,969 patients.

Joseph Brant Hospital had the second shortest wait time, just under an hour-and-a-half and the third-highest patient volume, with 4,282 patients.

Hospitals explain what impacts wait times

CBC Hamilton contacted all hospital systems in the area to hear what impacted wait times.

HHS spokesperson Wendy Stewart said the hospital network is a regional trauma centre and provides "several regional services not available elsewhere in the community."

"This means that HHS receives and cares for some of the most critically ill/injured patients in our region and from around the province," she wrote in an email.

"Additionally, staffing and capacity pressures continue across all HHS sites and the health-care sector at large. We are grateful to our staff and physicians for doing everything possible to meet the needs of all patients."

She noted how HHS emergency departments were comparable or better than other peer teaching and research hospitals like London Health Sciences Centre, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and University Health Network.

McMaster Children's Hospital also had a shorter wait time than other children's hospitals, Stewart added.

Stewart also said in the past 12 months, particularly late last year, HHS faced more pressures with kids catching the flu and respiratory syncytial virus, known as RSV.

HHS and St. Joe's also have a website that allow people to see the estimated wait in real time.

Niagara Health declined an interview but in an email spokesperson Michelle Pressé pointed to staffing issues as a factor.

She also said the organization is "aggressively" recruiting and doing "everything possible to alleviate these pressures."

Pressé added the region has more seniors than most other regions, higher rates of people with chronic conditions and says the region is short by roughly 100 family doctors.

"We continue to see a high volume of patients who use our emergency departments because they don't have access to a primary care physician ... hospitals are where they turn for care, which adds to wait times," she said.

Dr. Ian Preyra, chief of staff at Joseph Brant Hospital in Burlington since July 2018, told CBC Hamilton the hospital has spent the past eight or so years focusing on improving patients' experience and the wait time in the emergency department.

"We haven't always been successful, just like every other hospital ... bit by bit, we've made improvements and sustained them," he said. "I don't think by any stretch we're where we want to be, but I think we're really proud of how far we've come."

Preyra said the hospital focused on creating a schedule that allowed emergency doctors to meet the needs of patients better and having a system that ensures no single patient is taking up a bed for longer than necessary.

"If our nurses see a patient that they think needs to be seen, they feel very comfortable approaching the physician to do so," he said.

As for hospitals with longer wait times, Preyra said it's a provincial issue.

"Emergency departments across the province have really struggled in trying to get patients seen," he said.

"It's a problem with a system that is overwhelmed, often working short-staffed."