Total Time Spent in ER: The maximum amount of time 9 out of 10 patients spend in an ER being diagnosed, receiving treatment or waiting for admission to a hospital bed. Most patients spend less time, while one out of ten patients will spend more time.

 

Provincial Target: Ontario has two targets for time spent in ER:

• up to 8 hours for patients with complex conditions requiring more time for diagnosis, treatment or hospital bed admission
• up to 4 hours for patients who have minor or uncomplicated conditions requiring less time for diagnosis, treatment or observation

 

Provincial Time Spent in ER: The time spent in ER value calculated from all time spent in ER data submitted in Ontario.

 

Complex conditions/requiring more time for diagnosis, treatment or hospital bed admission: Refers to the maximum amount of time 9 out of 10 patients with complex conditions requiring more time for diagnosis, treatment or hospital bed admission spent within the ER from the time they register to the time they leave the ER.

 

Minor or uncomplicated conditions/requiring less time for diagnosis, treatment or observation:Refers to the maximum amount of time 9 out of 10 patients with minor or uncomplicated conditions requiring less time for diagnosis, treatment or observation spent within the ER from the time they register to the time their visit is complete and they leave the ER.

 

NA = Not Available

 

NC = Non-compliant: This means that a hospital was required to report total time spent in the ER, but did not report by the deadline for publication on this website.

 

NV = No or low volume: This means that a hospital, which is required to report, either reported that they did not have any ER visits during the period, or the number of cases reported did not meet the indicator threshold.

 

NR = Not required to report: This means that a hospital was not required to report their data.

 

NS = No service information available: This means that a hospital does not have Emergency Services.

 

RI = Reporting Issue: This facility did not meet the data quality criteria for reporting purposes. However the facility's data has been incorporated in the LHIN and Provincial level data.

 

Hospital Type: There are differences among hospitals. The services a hospital provides and the number of patients it treats can impact how long you have to wait in an ER. For example, an ER that tends to treat very severe/urgent patients may have longer wait times. Hospitals have been grouped by various categories to simplify the comparison.

 

Teaching Hospital: Teaching Hospitals provide acute and complex patient care and have membership in the Council of Academic Hospitals of Ontario (CAHO). They are affiliated with a medical or health sciences school, are involved in significant research activity, and provide training for interns and residents.

 

Very High-Volume Community Hospital: Very High-Volume Community Hospitals treat over 50,000 annual ER visits.

 

High-Volume Community Hospital: High-Volume Community Hospitals treat between 30,000 to less than 50,000 annual ER visits.

 

Medium-Volume Community Hospital: Medium-Volume Community Hospitals treat between 20,000 to less than 30,000 annual ER visits.

 

Low-Volume Community Hospital: Low-Volume Community Hospitals treat less than 20,000 annual ER visits. In general, these hospitals are the only hospital available in a given community.

 

Paediatric Hospital: Paediatric Hospitals treat only patients 18 years of age or less. Generally they will provide all types of paediatric services.

 

Urgent Care Centre: Urgent Care Centres provide services to patients without an appointment seeking treatment for non-life threatening conditions during the day, in the evening and on weekends. Urgent Care Centres are equipped to provide all types of treatment, with the exception of surgery.