‘Nothing has changed’: New data, same old problems with hospital wait times

Back in September, our podcast featured an emotional interview with Hazel van der Werken, a grieving mother who is on a mission to slash wait times at Ontario emergency departments.

Her son, Finlay van der Werken, died from sepsis and pneumonia in February 2024 — after waiting more than eight hours to be treated at Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. 

“Everybody knows how bad and how long the wait times are, yet we seem to be complacent because nothing has changed,” Hazel told the podcast. “This is something that has been progressively getting worse, and for us as Finlay's parents, it doesn't even feel like a choice. It feels like we have a responsibility to help with that change and to help make sure that things are reformed.”

Along with demanding a coroner’s inquest, the family is calling on Doug Ford’s government to introduce legislation — “Finlay’s Law” — that would establish maximum emergency room wait times for children.

They have also launched a lawsuit against Halton Healthcare Services, which operates the Oakville hospital, alleging the facility had an “inadequate system” in place to ensure patients like Finlay were seen in an appropriate amount of time. (In a statement of defence, the hospital operator denies any wrongdoing and says staff provided “reasonable care” that night.)

Has the system improved at all since Finlay’s tragic death? It doesn’t appear so.

According to data analyzed by CBC Marketplace and the Montreal Economic Institute, close to 500,000 Canadians actually walked out of ERs last year without being seen by a doctor. Ontario had the lowest rate among provinces, but the data still reveals that approximately 5 per cent of Ontario patients left an emergency room without seeing a doctor in 2024.

A separate report reveals another alarming statistic: 23,746. That is the number of Canadian patients (at least) who died last fiscal year while on government waiting lists for surgeries or diagnostic scans.

The data, obtained via freedom of information by the think tank SecondStreet.org, further shows that 355 patients in Ontario died while waiting for cardiac surgery or a cardiac procedure. 

On tonight’s episode of Closer Look, we revisit parts of our conversation with Hazel van der Werken. You can watch the full interview HERE.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, and produced by Derek Turner, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.