If you have a serious medical emergency, call 911 or go to your nearest Emergency Department.
If you are unsure whether it is an emergency, call Telehealth Ontario at 1-866-797-0000 and speak with one of their nurses.
What to Expect When Visiting the Emergency Department
Our Emergency Department is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Emergency Department is located at the back of the building. Use the entrance at 350 John Street, follow the ramp beside the ambulance bay, turn left after passing through the gate, and you will be in the Emergency Department parking lot.
If you require a wheelchair, they are located at the entrance.
What should I bring with me?
Bring your provincial health insurance card (OHIP), hospital card, a list of prescription medications and dosages and contact information for your family doctor or other regular healthcare provider. We ask that you have only one family member or friend wait with you.
Where do I park?
Adequate paid parking is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at both the front and back of the hospital. There are clearly designated handicapped parking spaces.
For more information on parking, please click here.
What happens when I arrive?
When you arrive, you will check in with reception to let them know the nature of your visit. They will ask you for your health card and ask some simple questions. Then you will be assessed by a triage nurse who will evaluate how quickly you need to be seen and treated. This process is known as “triage”.
How long will I have to wait?
The Emergency Department does not function on a first-come, first-served basis. Triage is a system used to identify the sickest patients so they can be seen first. The triage nurse will make their assessment based on a history of your illness or injury and a review of your vital signs.
Every effort will be made to serve you as quickly as possible. An Emergency Department team member will tell you approximately how long you can expect to wait, although this time may change if patients with more urgent needs arrive.
Please not leave the Emergency Department without first telling a member of the Emergency Department team. It’s important that your illness, injury or condition be assessed before you leave.
While you’re waiting, please don’t eat or drink anything until you ask a member of the Emergency Department team. Some tests can’t be done if you’ve had anything to eat or drink.
How do you decide who gets seen first?
The triage nurse will use the Canadian Triage and Acuity Scale (CTAS) to prioritize each patient’s issue. This is a scale from one to five, with one being the most urgent and five being non-urgent. The same triage process also applies to patients arriving by ambulance.
Level 1 – Resuscitation: obviously life threatening
(such as cardiac arrest, coma, blocked airway)
Level 2 – Emergent: conditions with a potential threat to life or limb
(such as chest pain suggestive of heart problems, severe bleeding)
Level 3 – Urgent: a condition or serious problem requiring emergency intervention
(such as shortness of breath, abdominal pain, kidney stones)
Level 4 – Less urgent: conditions which because of distress or potential for complications would benefit from intervention
(such as bladder infections, lacerations)
Level 5 – Non-urgent: conditions which are non-urgent and/or which might be part of a chronic problem
(such as diarrhea, insect bites, dressing changes)
What if I start feeling worse while I’m waiting?
If your condition changes and you begin to feel worse, tell an Emergency Department team member immediately.
We do not replace lost pills, lost prescriptions, or renew prescriptions for narcotics. These are the responsibility of you and your own doctor.
Arnprior Regional Health has ZERO TOLERANCE for any forms of abuse including physical violence, threats, harassment, aggressive behavior or foul language.