Clinics in Sidney, Langford, and Victoria have the longest wait times in all of Canada, according to a report.
Findings released on Wednesday by Medimap.ca show that people living in Sidney experience average clinic wait times of up to 180 minutes, followed by people in Langford who wait for 117 minutes, and Victoria residents at 92 minutes.
See also: Website allows patients to check wait times online for walk-in-clinics in Victoria
Across Canada, the average time before patients could see a doctor at a walk-in clinic was 31 minutes, but in British Columbia this number jumps up to 50 minutes.
Associated Physicians, a walk-in clinic in Sidney, closed its doors in 2018 with their three doctors merging with Ocean Pier Medical Clinic, leaving patients in the municipality with one less place to seek care.
“Many Canadians rely on walk-in clinics when they need to see a doctor. We created Medimap as a simple solution that saves time and frustration for these people when they need access to care.” said Blake Adam, CEO and Founder of Medimap in a statement.
“People want convenience, and if every Canadian is empowered with information to make an informed decision on where they can get the most immediate access to care in their community, we will have fewer people using our emergency rooms unnecessarily and a healthier society.”
The information for the 2019 Medimap Clinic Wait Time Index is based on data collected by Medimap.ca between November 1st 2018 and October 31st 2019.
Medimap is the country’s largest online and mobile real-time resource providing information about same-day access to clinic care.
According to a press release from the company, around 70% of all walk-in clinics are registered with Medimap and update their wait time information every 30 minutes.
Information from their index shows that on average, people in Alberta spend the least amount of time waiting in a clinic, as their wait time clocks in at 23 minutes.
Average provincial clinic wait times are highest in Nova Scotia at 69 minutes.
“Many Canadians don’t have access to a family doctor and, for those who do, it can often take weeks to get an appointment. Your health needs can’t always wait, which is where walk-in clinics fill an important gap in our health care system” said Adam.
“Medimap is free and accessible to anyone who needs it across Canada.”
