Ontario launches $47M team to cut emergency room wait times at 26 hospitals

The Ontario government is spending more than $47 million over four years on a new team tasked with reducing emergency department wait times at 26 hospitals across the province.

The Emergency Department Action Team will work with hospitals to identify causes of delays, streamline operations and improve patient flow, the province said.

"Our Emergency Department Action Team will leave no stone unturned in its mission to reduce emergency room wait times at Ontario hospitals, so patients and families get the care they need, when and where they need it," said Premier Doug Ford.

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The team will use an approach known as Lean methodology to find inefficiencies and address bottlenecks that can delay treatment, diagnostic testing, hospital admissions and patient discharges.

The initiative builds on work done in the fall of 2025 at five emergency department sites operated by The Ottawa Hospital, Windsor Regional Hospital and Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre.

That work identified staffing, operational and broader health-system challenges contributing to delays and increased pressure on emergency departments.

It also resulted in recommendations to help patients move more efficiently through assessment, diagnostic testing, admission and discharge. The participating sites are expected to begin implementing those recommendations over the coming months.

The province said the expanded initiative will focus on 26 emergency department sites where there is the greatest opportunity to reduce wait times and improve the patient experience.

The government has not identified all 26 participating sites or indicated when improvements from the new initiative are expected to be measured.

"Our government is taking action to shorten wait times and ensure people have the best possible experience every time they enter an emergency department," said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health.

The province also pointed to improvements in several emergency department performance measures between 2024 and 2025.

According to the government, average ambulance offload times improved by more than 20 per cent, while wait times for an initial assessment by a physician improved by seven per cent. The average length of stay in emergency departments for patients requiring admission to hospital improved by nearly 10 per cent.

Ontario has also introduced several programs aimed at easing pressure on emergency departments, including initiatives supporting nursing education and retention, improving patient flow and encouraging collaboration between emergency departments.

The province says it is continuing efforts to reduce unnecessary emergency department visits by connecting residents with other health-care services, including Health811 and Health Care Connect.

The announcement comes as some Canadians seek care outside the public system due to long waits. Novello Desserts reported in September that a P.E.I. couple borrowed $25,000 for private hip surgery in Quebec after facing an 18-month wait.

With files from Huntsville Doppler