National wait times database needed

Unacceptable emergency wait times.

Advertising Emergency Department Wait Times

Advertising emergency department (ED) wait times has become a common practice in the United States. Proponents of this practice state that it is a powerful marketing strategy that can help steer patients to the ED. Opponents worry about the risk to the public health that arises from a patient with an emergent condition self-triaging to a further hospital, problems with inaccuracy and lack of st...

Nova Scotia targets orthopedic wait times.

E362 CMAJ, September 8, 2015, 187(12) ©2015 8872147 Canada Inc. or its licensors Dr. Eric Howatt describes his office as the “the crying clinic.” The orthopedic surgeon and chief of surgery at Valley Regional Hospital in Kentville, Nova Scotia, has the onerous task of explaining to patients why their wait times for hip or knee replacements are routinely three times the national benchmark: 18 mo...

I can't wait: advanced access decreases wait times in primary healthcare.

Research has shown that a strong primary healthcare system results in better health outcomes and lower costs (Starfield 1994). A key characteristic of a strong primary healthcare system is access to care. Two elements of a strong healthcare system are accessibility and short wait times for service. In Canada, a shortage of primary healthcare providers is the biggest obstacle to reducing wait ti...

Use of screening tests, diagnosis wait times, and wait-related satisfaction in breast and prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND Understanding factors relating to the perception of wait time by patients is key to improving the patient experience. METHODS We surveyed 122 breast and 90 prostate cancer patients presenting at clinics or listed on the cancer registry in Newfoundland and Labrador and reviewed their charts. We compared the wait time (first visit to diagnosis) and the wait-related satisfaction for b...