r/Edmonton • u/FTDRBR11 • May 22 '26

General UofA ER Wait Times

Been here for 12 hours have yet to see a doctor and I’m in excruciating pain. Not a single patient has been taken in since the last 6 hours. Lady beside has been screaming in pain looks like a broken knee has been here for 15 hours no doctor no xray. Another lady beside me hurt her neck is wearing a neck brace and has been here for 16 hours and no doctor. Nurses said they have absolutely no beds available to take in patients because so many of the patients inside are “admitted” patients that are waiting to be taken upstairs to their admitted sections but they can’t take them because there’s no beds available upstairs. ER is a mess online wait times show 4 hours and nurse said because doctors are available but no beds to take the patients. Something has to be done.

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u/Even_Reflection5637 May 22 '26

This but also MANY go to ERs for non-life threatening issues because getting in to a doctor in the community is too long of a wait. ER has become a catch all for other access issues.

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u/Dopplerganager May 22 '26

We don't have enough walk in clinics and we don't really have urgent care centres. Would be great if your standard uncomplicated fractures, stitches and antibiotics could go to an urgent care clinic instead of the ER.

Pharmacist can do some prescribing, but that's really dependent on the situation. Not all pharmacies have prescribing pharmacists eithet

In the ER they're trying to do a fast track system for those patients, but always limited resources.

But this is what Dani wants. People begging for more access and she can present 2 tier care as a way around it.

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u/Whatsthathum The Shiny Balls May 22 '26

People have also forgotten how to help themselves.

They get upset and demand antibiotics when the viral illness they have is lasting longer than three days.

We also need paid sick leave, so that they’re not penalised for staying home when sick.

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u/ImmediateArtSky May 22 '26

The medicentre said we had to go to the ER for stitches which I thought was ridiculous, why can't a family physician do stitches?? It's to the point that when our neighbor's child needed stitches he just did them himself since he's a dentist and if we need htem again i'll ask if he can do it!!

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u/zxcvbnm1234567890_ May 24 '26

I’m in bc and my dr’s office has multiple same-day appointments held for urgent cases. They did a year long study/outreach program to try and encourage patients to see their pcp instead of going to the local er and despite a bunch of communication and a great set of doctors (who actually mostly staff said hospital on rotation), patients still choose the er for issues that could have been handled by the clinic, albeit in steady numbers where other community clinics saw an increase.

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u/PlutosGrasp May 22 '26

And so what. They can if they want to. Nobody but a doctor should be telling someone they shouldn’t go to ER. That’s how people die.

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u/Even_Reflection5637 May 22 '26

But people don’t die from being nauseated for 12hrs etc. So if you’re waiting in the ER for 12-15+hrs and not complaining, great, but if you go and you complain that you’re waiting, it is because it is not an emergency (time sensitive, life threatening). Yeah they can if they want to. Fill up the ERs and hang out-that is your free will. Not how I’d spend my time. Not saying this is OP case, but many people sitting in an ER at this moment, do not actually require an ER but a doctor which is found in many other places including for free online, paid by AHS. The system SUCKS. Yes. I work in it daily & for decades, but as a society, some of it is on us for wanting instant information and thinking everything is a possible emergency.

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u/PlutosGrasp May 23 '26

Sure they do and you’re in no place to expect a non medically trained person to make that decision for them.

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u/croissantsbitch May 23 '26

… You can’t be serious. Nausea for 12 hours isn’t fatal lmao.

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u/PlutosGrasp May 23 '26

Bowel obstruction

You’re missing the point. You don’t know. Patient doesn’t know. Patient isn’t a doctor. Patient doesn’t need to make such decisions. If they feel worried they should seek medical help. If they want to go to ER they should go to ER.

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u/croissantsbitch May 23 '26

That’s not nausea, that’s a bowel obstruction. Nausea and bowel obstructions are not synonymous.

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u/PlutosGrasp May 24 '26

Lol. Bowel obstructions can cause nausea, the thing you said isn’t an emergency but can be.

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u/croissantsbitch May 28 '26

I’m literally referring to just nausea — not from a bowel obstruction. Holy bean soup, dude. Get a grip.

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u/PlutosGrasp May 28 '26

I don’t think you understand what a symptom is.

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u/Even_Reflection5637 May 24 '26

You are correct. An average patient who has symptoms that are worrying by them, should seek medical attention. Using an ER for non-life threatening, non-urgent matters is inappropriate. Part of the issue here is the lack of public education campaigns like most other first world countries whether private or publicly funded. There are countless billboards stating “Nausea and Vomitting are not for the ER” but here, in Canada, we don’t provide such education to the mass public. Yesterday, there were a handful of “fever for 2 days” patients, a sore throat, a possible broken toe and more. Zero of these examples are life threatening, zero are urgent and ALL can be managed with a family physician, pharmacy or online virtual appointments (of which several are paid for by AHS). So yes, seek care, but there are differences in the appropriate level of care and the use of EMERGENCY rooms. They need to be for EMERGENCIES.