Banff 
A recent report by the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI), a non-partisan public policy think tank, reveals significant disparities in emergency room wait times across Canadian provinces, underscoring ongoing challenges in timely healthcare access.
Two primary indicators were used to measure ER performance: median total length of stay and time to initial assessment by a physician or nurse practitioner. These figures represent the midpoint in wait times, offering a more stable measure than averages, which can be skewed by extreme cases.
The MEI compiled data from the 2024–2025 fiscal year across eight provinces.
- Length of stay: Newfoundland and Labrador reported the shortest median length of stay at 2 hours and 45 minutes. In contrast, Quebec patients face the longest median stay at 5 hours and 23 minutes, nearly double that of Newfoundland and Labrador.
- Time to initial assessment: Alberta and Ontario had the shortest median time to be seen by a medical professional, both at 1 hour and 30 minutes. Prince Edward Island recorded the longest, with a median wait of 2 hours and 58 minutes, almost twice the time seen in Ontario and Alberta.
Performance at the hospital level showed even greater variation. The Bay d’Espoir Medical Clinic in Newfoundland and Labrador reported a median ER stay of just 29 minutes, while patients at Quebec’s Pavillon Albert-Prévost had a median stay exceeding 13 hours.
Health Care Wait Times in Canada 2024: How Long You Need to Wait For Medical Treatment
The report notes that ER wait times are longer today than they were five years ago in all provinces reviewed. Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia did not provide current data.
Credit: Montreal Economic Institute (MEI)
ER Wait Times in British Columbia:
In British Columbia, the median patient spent 4 hours and 13 minutes in the emergency room in 2024, an increase of 1 hours and 1 minute over the past five years.
Regions with the longest median ER stays:
- Provincial Health: 4 hours and 18 minutes
- Island Health: 4 hours and 15 minutes
- Fraser Health: 4 hours and 12 minutes
Longest single facility wait:
- Victoria General Hospital and the Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre: 6 hours and 36 minutes
- Royal Jubilee Hospital, Victoria: 6 hours and 18 minutes
ER Wait Times in Alberta:
In Alberta, the median patient spent 3 hours and 48 minutes in the emergency room in 2024. This has increased by 54 minutes over the past five years.
Regions with the longest median ER stays:
- Edmonton: 5 hours and 54 minutes
- Calgary: 4 hours and 42 minutes.
Longest single facility wait:
- The University of Alberta Hospital, Edmonton: 8 hours and 30 minutes ( longest in Alberta)
- The Misericordia Community Hospital, Edmonton: 7 hours and 54 minutes
- The Royal Alexandra Hospital, Edmonton: 7 hours and 42 minutes
ER Wait Times in Saskatchewan:
No data available.
ER Wait Times in Manitoba:
The median emergency room stay last year was 4 hours, an increase of 48 minutes compared to five years ago.
Regions with the longest median ER stays:
- Winnipeg Regional Health Authority: 7 hours and 24 minutes
- Shared Health: 4 hours and 48 minutes
- Interlake-Eastern Region Health Authority: 3 hours and 6 minutes
Longest single facility wait:
- The St. Boniface General Hospital, Winnipeg: 10 hours and 30 minutes
- Grace Hospital, Winnipeg: 10 hours and 6 minutes
- The Health Sciences Centre’s adult emergency room: 7 hours and 48 minutes
ER Wait Times in Ontario:
The median emergency room stay last year was 4 hours, an increase of 54 minutes compared to five years ago.
Regions with the longest median ER stays:
- East Health Region: 4 hours and 44 minutes
- North East Health Region: 4 hours and 14 minutes
- Toronto Health Region: 4 hours and 13 minutes
Longest single facility wait:
- Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto: 8 hours and 13 minutes
- Ottawa Hospital’s General Campus: 7 hours and 34 minutes
- Hôpital Montfort, Ottawa: 7 hours and 23 minutes
ER Wait Times in Quebec:
Median ER stay in Quebec in the past year was 5 hours and 23 minutes, up 10 minutes from the previous year. Over the past five years, the median ER stay has increased by 1 hour.
Regions with the longest median ER stays:
- Laval: 8 hours
- Laurentides: 7 hours and 7 minutes
- Montérégie: 6 hours and 55 minutes
Longest single facility wait:
- Pavillon Albert-Prévost’s mental health ER in Montréal: 13 hours and 5 minutes.
- Royal Victoria Hospital: 10 hours and 33 minutes
- Centre hospitalier Anna-Laberge: 10 hours and 26 minutes
ER Wait Times in Nova Scotia:
No data available.
ER Wait Times in New Brunswick:
In New Brunswick, the median patient spent 4 hours and 28 minutes in the emergency room last year. This has increased by 58 minutes over the past four years.
Regions with the longest median ER stays:
- Horizon Health Networks: 4 hours and 51 minutes
- Vitalité Health Network: 3 hours and 21 minutes at
Longest single facility wait:
- Moncton Hospital: 7 hours and 22 minutes
- Saint John Regional Hospital: 6 hours and 37 minutes
- Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital Fredericton: 6 hours and 25 minutes
ER Wait Times on PEI:
The median emergency room stay last year was 4 hours and 36 minutes, an increase of 1 hour and 35 minutes over the past five years.
Longest single facility wait:
- Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Charlottetown: 5 hours and 19 minutes
- Prince County Hospital, Summerside: 5 hours and 13 minutes
ER Wait Times in Newfoundland and Labrador:
The median emergency room stay last year was 2 hours and 45 minutes, an increase of 41 minutes compared to five years ago.
Regions with the longest median ER stays:
- Eastern Urban Health Region: 4 hours and 52 minutes
- Western Health Region: 2 hours and 51 minutes
- Eastern-Rural Health Region: 2 hours and 39 minutes
Longest single facility wait:
- The Health Sciences Centre, St. John’s: 6 hours and 38 minutes
- Clares Mercy Hospital, St. John’s: 5 hours and 31 minutes
- Western Memorial Regional Hospital, Corner Brook: 4 hours and 8 minutes
BC waiting times, particularly Fraser Health waiting time given above does not match with reality. I have observed, on several occasion, in the last year it to be 7-9 hours.
this is ridicolous waiting in the emergency for so long . Our health care system has to change.