What's behind 18 hour emergency department wait times at LHSC?

The wait time has reached 18 hours for all but the most serious medical conditions treated at London’s two emergency departments.

The wait time has reached 18 hours for all but the most serious medical conditions treated at London’s two emergency departments.

“Certainly this is the most strained we have been in the emergency department,” explains Dr. Christie MacDonald, citywide chief of emergency medicine at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC).

Patients are being told to prepare for a lengthy wait by bringing a water bottle, phone charger, book, and snacks to the ER if they have non-urgent or non-emergent conditions including:

“They are waiting a significant length of time to be seen, but all of our patients are waiting longer periods of time than we would want,” adds Dr. MacDonald.

The strain is being felt by all areas of emergency healthcare.

According to the union representing paramedics in London and Middlesex County, the growing wait times are taking a toll.

“When a patient is waiting 18 to 20 hours, that means the dayshift paramedic is handing over to the night shift, and sometimes the night shift is handing (the patient) back over to the same day crew,” explains Jason Schinbein, president of OPSEU Local 147.