Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubé is launching a new information tool designed to give the public with a more accurate picture of the situation in the province's hospital emergency rooms.
The tool is still in the early stages, according to the minister in a press release. Nevertheless, some indicators are already available at Quebec.ca/SituationUrgences.
For each establishment, patients can find out the number of people in the emergency room or waiting to see a doctor, the average length of stay for a patient in the waiting room or on a stretcher. The public will also be able to find out the occupancy rate of stretchers.
The average waiting time to see a doctor will be added in a few weeks as a complementary indicator to inform the population, as well as the waiting time for 811.
The data will be updated hourly, with the exception of the average length of stay, which will be updated daily.
Dubé believes that the data will give Quebecers an idea of the situation in their region's emergency rooms and the alternatives available to them, such as making an appointment with a health professional.
Furthermore, the health minister said that following the implementation of the crisis unit and the introduction of new measures intended to reduce the pressure on emergency rooms, the situation is beginning to show signs of improvement.
He said that several concrete results have been noted in recent weeks, but that the situation remains precarious.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Jan. 31, 2023.
