EDMONTON – Leaked documents show not one hospital is meeting its emergency room wait-time targets so far this year, Alberta’s New Democrats say.
NDP Leader Rachel Notley says the numbers show some patients have to wait 20 hours or more in most of the province’s major hospitals.
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The government has set an eight-hour benchmark in a plan to improve health care.
Notley says despite the government making wait times a priority, the numbers are getting worse.
READ MORE: Alberta NDP says hospital infrastructure years behind because of neglect
She says constant reorganization of health-care administration has left front-line staff confused and demoralized.
Health Minister Stephen Mandel has promised new beds will be opened to reduce bottlenecks that put pressure on emergency wards.
Alberta Health Services says the median length of stay for emergency department patients was 8.8 hours in 2013/14 – an hour less than the national average.
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