Michael Garron Hospital’s (MGH) Stavro Emergency Department (ED) regularly sees 300 patients per day, making it one of the busiest in Toronto. During cold and flu season, the department is usually even busier.
We know many patients and community members rely on our ED to get the urgent, potentially life-saving care they need. That’s why our ED Team has worked hard to introduce new processes and innovations that help reduce wait times and improve the ED experience for everyone.
Here are some ways our ED Team is making emergency care better for you and your loved ones. A reminder that, if you think you may need care in our ED, we encourage you to review our ED webpage, if possible, to help ensure you come prepared and that our teams are able to support you as safely and quickly as possible.
E-Booking Portal for Minor Injuries
This is an online booking portal that allows patients to book a same-day or next-day appointment to see a doctor in our ED for minor injuries, including a fracture, sprain or small broken bone.
Patients who meet the portal's criteria and book an appointment will be given a time slot. They are asked to arrive in our ED 30 minutes before their appointment time. This helps reduce wait times for patients with minor injuries. Learn more about our E-Booking Portal for Minor Injuries.
Child and Youth Emergency Zone
Our Child and Youth Emergency Zone is a family-friendly space beside our ED. It is designed to treat children and youth aged 17 years and under in East Toronto who need urgent or acute medical care when their paediatrician or family doctor is not available. This includes assessing and treating illness, including cold, flu and COVID-19 symptoms, as well as injury, pain or mental health crises.
Patients who visit our Child and Youth Emergency Zone have the opportunity to receive paediatric assessment and treatment, as well as coping supports, in a dedicated space that is physically separate from the hospital’s main ED. This helps make the ED experience more comfortable for local children, youth and families at a hospital that is close to home.
The space includes a dedicated waiting room, kid-friendly activities and Child Life Specialists who provide developmentally appropriate preparation and support; facilitate coping techniques, play and therapeutic interventions; and offer psychosocial support during challenging times.
Learn more about our Child and Youth Emergency Zone and read a family’s experience receiving care in this space.
Virtual Reality (VR) headsets
Our Child and Youth Emergency Zone offers virtual reality (VR) headsets to children and youth to help improve their emergency care experience.
The VR headsets offer a positive distraction for kids, allowing them to enjoy fun and immersive games at the same time they are receiving potentially painful or uncomfortable procedures like blood collection, intravenous therapy or the treatment of cuts or wounds.
Child Life Specialists, who promote positive hospital experiences for children, youth and families across MGH, introduce patients in our Child and Youth Emergency Zone to the VR headsets and assist with setting up the games. This helps children feel safer and more comfortable, while supporting and improving coping.
Patient-centred wait time clocks
Patients will find detailed wait time clocks in our ED triage area, Green Zone and Pink Zone. Displayed on digital screens, these clocks help patients better understand how long they can expect to wait before seeing a triage nurse or a doctor in these areas.
While wait time clocks are common in EDs in Ontario, our ED’s wait time clocks are unique because the clocks show a “Patient List” of individuals who are waiting to see a triage nurse or doctor at any given time. This allows patients to see where they are in the queue. To protect patient privacy, the clocks only display the patient’s first name and last four numbers of their medical record number (MRN).
These wait time clocks help provide patients with accurate information about what they can expect during their visit to MGH’s ED. It also increases awareness among patients and their loved ones about how busy the ED is at any given time. Learn more about our ED’s wait time clocks.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) transcribing tool
This year, our ED adopted a new artificial intelligence (AI) tool to help reduce emergency department wait times, improve care for patients, and lessen the administrative burden on emergency physicians that can lead to burnout.
Called Ambient Scribe, the tool allows physicians in our ED to record interactions with consenting patients through a secure smartphone app. It uses AI technology to listen to, transcribe and produce clinical notes from conversations between patients and their physicians. Patients can opt in or out of using this tool when they see a physician in the ED.
The technology follows Canadian privacy laws. Physicians are able to review and edit the notes produced by Ambient Scribe, and add notes related to a patient’s diagnoses, physical exams, treatment plans, labs and discharge instructions.
This AI-enabled process means physicians can better focus on assessing and interacting with patients, rather than having to split their attention between their patient and taking notes. It also reduces wait times for patients in the ED and enables more meaningful connections between patients with their treating physicians.
Eight physicians in MGH’s ED used this tool from April to August 2024. During this time, these physicians saw 10% to 13% more patients, which is about two or three more patients for each physician’s shift. Due to the success of this pilot, all emergency physicians in the department now have the option to use it with consenting patients. Learn more about the use of the AI transcribing tool in our ED.