Ontario ER Wait Times

At 8:25 pm EDT, the shortest published ER wait among Hamilton ERs was St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton, Charlton Campus at 1 hour 16 minutes. The median across 5 reporting ERs was 1 hour 54 minutes. Numbers change through the day, so check the list above before you go.

Halton Healthcare publishes "Estimated wait to see a physician": Estimated wait time to see a physician in the Emergency Department. Halton Healthcare updates it every 15 minutes.

London Health Sciences Centre publishes "Estimated wait to see a physician": The most current estimate of how long it will take for non-urgent and non-emergent patients to be seen, from assessment by a triage nurse until they are seen by a doctor. It does not include time for specialized care such as imaging, or time in hospital if a patient is admitted. LHSC estimates it from data in its health information system.

LHSC Children's Hospital publishes "Estimated wait to see a physician": An estimate of how long it will take for non-urgent and non-emergent children and youth to be seen, from assessment by a triage nurse until they are seen by a doctor. LHSC updates it every 15 minutes.

Brant Community Healthcare System publishes "Average wait to see a physician": The time between when you are greeted or triaged and the first time you see a physician. BCHS says 90% of its patients will see a physician in this amount of time, and updates it every 15 minutes.

BCHS Willett Urgent Care Centre publishes "Estimated wait for a new patient": The wait time indicator is an estimate of the current wait time for a new patient. BCHS notes that the unpredictable nature of the clinic may result in longer wait times for individual patients.

WRHN @ Midtown publishes "Longest expected wait to see a doctor": An estimate of how long you may wait, from arrival, to see a doctor or nurse practitioner. WRHN updates it every hour. Patients are seen based on how sick they are, not in the order they arrive, so it may change if patients with more serious needs arrive.

WRHN @ Queen's Blvd. publishes "Longest expected wait to see a doctor": An estimate of how long you may wait, from arrival, to see a doctor or nurse practitioner. WRHN updates it every hour. Patients are seen based on how sick they are, not in the order they arrive, so it may change if patients with more serious needs arrive.

Niagara Health publishes "Estimated wait to see a doctor or NP": Niagara Health's estimate of the time from checking in with the triage nurse to being seen by a doctor or nurse practitioner, based on how long patients have waited over the last six hours. It is shown to the nearest half hour, updated about every five minutes, and is not a guarantee of how long you will wait.

Hamilton Emergency Wait Times publishes "Average wait to see a doctor (last 6 hours)": The length of time between when you arrive to the front desk to check in and when you see a doctor. It is calculated by averaging the time that each patient has waited over the last six hours and is updated automatically every 15 minutes. Patients are triaged with the Canadian Triage and Acuity Scale and the sickest are seen first, so your own wait may be shorter or longer.

Windsor Regional Hospital emergency wait times publishes "Average wait to see a doctor or NP": The length of time between being assessed by a triage nurse and seeing a doctor or nurse practitioner, shown as an average. Windsor Regional Hospital says the most critical patients are seen first, so an individual's wait may be much shorter or longer than the average. Erie Shores HealthCare, which appears in the same feed, describes its figure as an estimate from being assessed at triage to being seen by a physician. Updated about every 15 minutes.

These measures can differ in their starting point and statistic. Compare estimates within the same measurement group. Patients with the most urgent needs are seen first.

Source: Niagara Health; WRHN @ Queen's Blvd.; London Health Sciences Centre; LHSC Children's Hospital; Brant Community Healthcare System; WRHN @ Midtown; Halton Healthcare; BCHS Willett Urgent Care Centre; Windsor Regional Hospital emergency wait times; Hamilton Emergency Wait Times

Providers publish estimates on different schedules. Our checks are separate from those updates, and the displayed number may stay the same after a check. Each listing shows its available timestamp; check the source-specific frequencies below.

Yes: Children's Hospital at London Health Sciences Centre and McMaster Children's Hospital. Children's emergency departments see children and teens; adults should go to an adult or all-ages ER. In a life-threatening emergency, call 911.

Yes. Every ER and urgent care centre listed on this page has a published wait estimate.

Call 911 for anything life-threatening. An emergency department is for serious problems that need a hospital. Urgent care treats problems that are not life-threatening but need care the same day, and its waits are listed separately. If you are not sure where to go, call Health811 at 811 for advice from a nurse.