Wait Times for Health Services

Reducing wait times and improving timely access to health services is important to Health PEI. As a patient, client or resident in the health care system, you may have to wait to see a primary care provider or a specialist, to have a test, for surgery or to be seen in an emergency department by a physician.

How are wait times measured?

A wait time is a measurement of how long you will wait for a health service. It can be measured in hours, days or weeks. 

Wait times are available for the following services:

Emergency Departments

Emergency department wait times are updated every five minutes. The estimated wait times are approximate and are intended for information purposes only.

• View Current Emergency Department Wait Times

Emergency Services

• Ambulance Response Times

Cancer Treatment

• Referral to a Specialist & Radiation Therapy Treatment

Diagnostic Imaging

• MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scan)
• CT (Computed Tomography Scan)
• Ultrasound

Surgery

• Surgery Wait Times (Hip and Knee Replacement, Cataract Surgery, Emergency Hip Fracture Repair)

Why is the wait time long in some areas?

There are many reasons why wait times can vary in some areas, for example the recruitment of specialists. The demand for service in some areas is growing faster than the supply Health PEI has available.

Why are wait times not listed for other services?

Health PEI hopes to continue to expand the reporting of wait times for other services. However, not all areas have electronic systems that capture the data in a usable format. A manual collection, in most cases, is too labour and resource intensive to warrant the investment for reporting purposes.