Lakeridge Health launches tracker that shows wait times at its 4 Durham Region emergency rooms

People who live in Durham Region can now check an online dashboard that will tell them how long they will have to wait to see a doctor when they go to an emergency room in their communities.

Lakeridge Health, an integrated regional health system that serves Durham Region, has launched what it calls an "Emergency Department Wait Times Tracker." The web-based tool tracks approximate wait times in emergency rooms in four of its hospitals east of Toronto.

Ilan Lenga, chief information officer at Lakeridge Health, said the health-care system developed the tracker ahead of what may be a challenging winter. He said there is the possibility of another COVID-19 wave and a tough flu season as the pandemic continues, something Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore echoed Thursday when he appealed to Ontarians to get vaccinated against both ailments.

"I think we want to commit to transparency and show the public what our wait times are at any given time," Lenga said on Thursday. 

"Sometimes, we're doing better with wait times than people believe and sometimes worse. It is a prolonged wait and they ought to know."

Lenga said the tracker will give patients a better understanding of how long they are going to wait to see an emergency room doctor. He said it will help manage their expectations before they go to the hospital, and it will allow them to consider alternatives to the emergency room, such as going to an urgent care clinic or visiting their primary care physician. 

He said the wait times, which are now public, will enable patients to see the different wait times across the four hospitals, which will give them information to make a decision about which emergency department is the best option.

The tool tracks wait times at Ajax Pickering, Bowmanville, Oshawa, and Port Perry hospitals. Lakeridge Health has five hospitals, four emergency departments, a long-term care home and more than 30 community health-care locations.

Lakeridge Health said the wait times do not apply to people experiencing a medical emergency and they will get immediate attention.

Lenga said the tracker doesn't solve staffing shortages that have led to emergency room wait times, but it will help with what he calls "load-balancing" — that is, an attempt by the health system to alleviate pressure on its emergency departments by distributing demand among its various hospitals.

As for this winter, Lakeridge Health is expecting its emergency departments to be busy. The demand will come as the health system deals with staffing issues, he said. This past summer, it temporarily closed its intensive care unit at the Bowmanville Hospital for weeks due to significant staffing shortages.

"We are on alert about the possibility of another wave of COVID. Also, internationally, we are hearing that this is likely to be a tough flu season," he said. 

"We may have the combination of an ongoing health human resource crisis, which is international, at the same time as a heavy season. We are planning for that, giving due consideration as to how to mitigate it as best as possible, but it is a thorny problem."

Lenga said the tracker is similar to flight information display systems that are set up at airports and it's all about improving patient experience and customer service.