In 2023-2024, over a period of approximately 11 months, 3.2 million patients presented to emergency departments in Quebec and 11.5% of them, or 376,460 people, left before receiving medical treatment.
In comparison, in 2018-2019 it was just over 10%, or 378,348 patients out of a total of 3.7 million visits.
“One in two people waits more than five hours in emergency rooms in Quebec. It’s not surprising that there are several who will leave,” commented the author of the study, Emmanuelle B. Faubert, in an interview.
Patients referred to another healthcare professional who can meet their needs do not count in this data since they are considered to have been taken care of.
“It remains a problem”
“It remains an increase because the study period in 2023-2024 is 11 months. So we see that in 11 months […] we have essentially the same number of patients who left the emergency room before treatment compared to [une période] one year five years ago,” said Ms. B. Faubert.
“It remains a problem considering the increase in budgets we put into health and all the reforms we make each year,” she adds.
She is particularly concerned about the 103,715 patients in categories P1, P2 and P3 who correspond to more urgent cases. According to data obtained from the Ministry of Health and Social Services, 25.3% of priority 3 patients left the emergency room before medical treatment, 2.2% of P2 and 0 patients, 03% of P1 patients.
The proportion of P1 to P3 patients who left the emergency room due to not having consulted a professional available to treat them increased from 21.9% in 2018-2019 to 27.5% in 2023-2024.
“It’s a big problem because it shows that our health system is incapable of taking care of Quebecers. And it’s dangerous when we think that the population is aging and needs are increasing,” argued Ms. B. Faubert.
Risks
For less urgent cases (P4 and P5), more than 70% of patients decided to leave the emergency room without having been treated.
“People who are not [des cas] urgent, they will not [aux urgences] for an outdoor walk. They go there because they need help, they need care, whether it’s urgent or not. They go there because they cannot find a better option elsewhere because we have a problem of access to the first line,” denounces the economist at the MEI.
She points out that a patient who leaves without having been treated has the risk that his condition will worsen and that he will return to the emergency room now being a more complex case.
Specialized nurse practitioner (NPP) clinics can be part of the solution, according to Ms. B. Faubert. The province has 11 and their number is expected to double by 2028, but the economist thinks we need to deploy more, more quickly.
She also described as “excellent news” the expansion of diagnosis for other health professionals, including pharmacists and nurses, included in Bill 67 recently adopted.
She is encouraged by the fact that nurse practitioners can now take care of patients registered at the family doctor access window. “It’s a step in the right direction,” she said.
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