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A woman seeking emergency care for severe abdominal pain recently shared her frustration on social media with the long wait times at a Canadian hospital.
Amanda Gushue, 37, first visited her primary care physician — who sent her to the emergency department with a swollen appendix.
After waiting for two hours in triage, she was sent to the waiting room — where she was shocked to see that it could be anywhere from five to 15 hours before she could see a doctor or nurse.
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She ultimately waited another 10 to 12 hours before she was seen.
“There were probably about 150 seats and they were all full,” Gushue, a resident of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, told Digital. “This is what we deal with when we go to the hospital on a regular basis — you’re looking at spending a full day there.”
Amanda Gushue, 37, sought emergency care for severe abdominal pain and shared her frustration with the long wait times at a Canadian hospital. (Amanda Gushue)
Gushue shared that one elderly woman came in with a head wound, “bleeding profusely,” and had to wait for two hours before she was seen.
Gushue said she attributes the long wait times to a scarcity of doctors. “We have tons of nurses, but no doctors.”
Even after she was admitted, Gushue said she received sub-par care and was not given sufficient privacy.
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Canada has a universal healthcare system that is funded through taxes, according to the government’s website.
Eligible residents of a province or territory can apply for public health insurance to access free healthcare services, the website states.
“I would rather pay for my healthcare at this point and get treated fairly,” Gushe said.
After waiting two hours in triage, a patient in her late 30s was sent to the waiting room — where she was shocked to see a 15-hour wait time displayed. (iStock)
Part of the problem is that Canada is “overpopulated,” she said, expressing her point of view.
“The healthcare system is overworked right now, and these doctors are probably exhausted,” she said. “They’re working around the clock, and then after a 16- or 17-hour shift, you get a cranky doctor.”
Gushe was ultimately admitted. She had her appendix removed last week.
She is now recovering and said she “feels great.”
“I would rather pay for my healthcare at this point and get treated fairly.”
In 2024-2025, there were more than 16.1 million unscheduled emergency department visits in Canada’s hospitals, an increase from about 15.5 million the year before, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI).
Among those patients who were admitted into the hospital from the emergency department, nine out of 10 of the ED visits were completed within 48-½ hours, the above source stated. For those who were not admitted, nine out of 10 were completed within around eight hours.
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Median wait times vary widely by province, CIHI stated.
Some of the main factors contributing to the extended wait times include staff and bed shortages, hospital flow issues (due to lack of primary care access), and overcrowding that leads to system stress, according to the Canadian Medical Association.
“The healthcare system is overworked right now, and these doctors are probably exhausted,” Gushue said. (iStock)
Dr. Warren Thirsk, an emergency room doctor in Edmonton, recently shared with the Calgary Journal that he sometimes sees more than 100 people in the waiting room of his hospital, which only has 30 chairs.
“People who can stand, stand. Some are on the ground, and we’re hoping they’re alive,” he said. “And you walk by this carnage, and then you start your day.”
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The doctor added that some patients wait all night to receive care. “What used to be a mass casualty event is now the new norm,” he said, per the report.
Another ER physician, Dr. Michael Howlett, who is president of the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians, also shared his concerns about the situation.
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“I’ve worked in emergency departments since 1987, and it’s by far the worst it’s ever been. It’s not even close,” he told CityNews, a Canadian news outlet.
“We’ve got people dying in waiting rooms because we don’t have a place to put them,” he went on. “People being resuscitated on an ambulance stretcher or a floor. Those things have happened.”
Canada has a universal healthcare system that is funded through taxes, according to the government’s website. (iStock)
In January, Alberta’s minister of hospitals announced an investigation into the death of a 44-year-old man who died after waiting nearly eight hours in an Edmonton emergency department with chest pain, according to local reports.
A system review has since been completed by Acute Care Alberta, identifying emergency department overcrowding and triage challenges. The review issued multiple recommendations to prevent similar incidents, though a formal investigation into the death remains ongoing.
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The government also announced new triage liaison physician roles in major hospitals, as physicians report continued overcrowding and capacity issues.
Digital reached out to Nova Scotia Health and Canada Health requesting comment.
