A woman facing severe abdominal pain sought emergency care in Canada and took to social media to describe the long wait, highlighting a system under strain.

Her account underscores how a routine medical concern can become a full day spent in the emergency department.

Amanda Gushue, 37, initially visited her family doctor who sent her to the emergency department because of a swollen appendix.

There were probably about 150 seats and they were all full, Gushue said, describing a waiting room that could swallow a full day.

After waiting two hours in triage, she was sent to the waiting room where she was shocked to learn the wait could be from five to 15 hours before seeing a clinician. She ultimately waited another 10 to 12 hours before she was seen.

Gushue recalled overcrowding and limited privacy, describing how the experience felt rushed and impersonal. “We have tons of nurses, but no doctors,” she said, underscoring a physician shortage.

Canada operates a universal healthcare system funded by taxes, with residents able to apply for public health insurance for access to free services.

“I would rather pay for my healthcare at this point and get treated fairly,” Gushe said, summarizing the perceived fairness and timeliness of care.

Gushue attributed the delays to a persistent shortage of doctors and a system stretched by demand. The lack of physicians stands in contrast to a large workforce of nurses.

CIHI data show the scale of the emergency department workload. In 2024 to 2025 there were more than 16.1 million unscheduled ED visits, up from about 15.5 million the year before.

Among those admitted from the ED, nine in ten visits were completed within 48 ½ hours; for those not admitted, nine in ten were completed within about eight hours.

Wait times vary widely by province, CIHI notes. Those disparities reflect bed shortages, hospital flow issues, and thin primary care access.

Dr. Warren Thirsk, an emergency physician in Edmonton, described waiting rooms that can hold more people than chairs. “People who can stand, stand. Some are on the ground, and we’re hoping they’re alive,” he said.

Dr. Michael Howlett, president of the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians, warned that the situation is the worst in his 36 years in the field.

“We’ve got people dying in waiting rooms because we don’t have a place to put them, and he warned that “What used to be a mass casualty event is now the new norm”.”

Provincial actions have included investigations into overcrowding and the creation of triage liaison physician roles to manage patient flow.

Officials say reforms must address access to primary care and hospital capacity to prevent patients from being treated in hallways.