Many hospitals across Ontario are dealing with longer wait times in emergency departments this summer, and Collingwood is no exception.
In a social media post published late Friday, Collingwood General and Marine Hospital posted on both Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) that wait times over the weekend would be longer than normal.
“Like many hospitals in the province, CGMH is currently experiencing staffing and occupancy challenges this summer,” noted the Facebook post. “As a result, we anticipate wait times this weekend may be longer than usual.”
“Please be patient and respectful of our teams, as they care for patients,” notes the post.
Multiple requests for an interview sent to CGMH’s media officer by CollingwoodToday were not returned by publication time.
New statistics from Health Quality Ontario show that in May 2023, CGMH had an emergency department wait time of about 1.9 hours. On average, low-urgency patients not admitted spent 2.9 hours total in the department, and 80 per cent of patients finished their emergency visit within the target time of four hours.
For comparison, across Ontario, the emergency department wait time average was two hours. On average, low-urgency patients not admitted spent 3.2 hours total in the department, and 74 per cent of patients finished their emergency visit within the target time of four hours.
On July 20, the province’s health ministry pledged an additional $44 million this year in 165 high volume and smaller emergency departments to help reduce wait times to address the strain on emergency department resources.
Current CGMH emergency department wait times can be found here. As of Monday, July 31 at 9:58 a.m., the wait time sat at three hours.
For non-urgent medical questions, residents are asked to call 811 to reach Health Connect Ontario. The after-hours clinic in Collingwood can also be accessed for non-urgent care. For more information, click here.
