When every four and a half minutes matters: Enhancing emergency care

Every four and a half minutes, a patient arrives at Southlake Health’s Emergency Department (ED) seeking care. Built in 2003 to support just over 80,000 visits annually, the ED now sees more than 123,000 patients each year. This reflects the rapid growth and increasing health care needs across northern York Region and southern Simcoe County. 

To help meet this demand, Southlake completed a major renewal and expansion of the ED to create more space and enhance the care environment for patients, staff, and medical staff. Combined with innovative tools like Southlake’s Emergency Department wait-time clock, these improvements are helping strengthen access to timely, leading edge emergency care, closer to home. 

Southlake Health expands Emergency Department to tackle hallway medicine 

To help meet the growing demand for care, Southlake Health completed a major renewal and expansion of its Emergency Department (ED), adding more than 2,400 square feet of purpose-built space designed to improve the patient and provider experience. The project included the addition of a third patient registration desk, three new consultation rooms with exam tables, a rapid EMS triage booth, and enhanced natural lighting to create a more welcoming and efficient care environment. 

The redesigned layout also supports Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) efforts and strengthens patient access and flow throughout the department. By helping patients move through the ED more efficiently, the new space reduces congestion and minimizes the risk of spreading viruses and other infectious illnesses. 

Completed in phases, the project transformed a former paramedic garage into expanded clinical space. While Southlake continues planning a second hospital site as part of its Distributed Health Network, the ED renewal and expansion provides meaningful improvements to patient care today. 

The project was made possible in part through the support of Southlake Health Foundation donors, whose generosity continues to help advance better experiences for patients, families, and health care teams. 

Know before you go: Southlake Health introduces new Emergency Department wait-time clock 

Imagine arriving at the Emergency Department (ED) and knowing what to expect. Southlake Health is making that a reality with the launch of a new online ED wait-time clock, giving patients and families real-time estimates of how long it may take to be seen by a physician. 

The ED wait-time clock eases the stress of an ED visit by supporting transparency, reducing uncertainty, and empowering patients with timely information. Patients can access it on Southlake’s website before or during their visit to see up-to-date information on the estimated time it takes to see a physician for an initial assessment. While patients are always seen based on the urgency of their condition and not the order of arrival, this new feature highlights Southlake’s commitment to accountability and patient-centred care. 

The ED wait-time clock can be accessed at: southlake.ca/emergency-department-wait-times.