***The lesson of my story: have a fever for 5 days and only then they will possibly check if it's pneumonia.*** Not sure how to feel about supposedly one of the best children's hospital in the area. Online wait time was estimated at 3-4 hours. We finished in 7-8 hours. Granted there were a lot of patients coming in continuously and probably more urgent. They give snacks, toys for kids waiting and there's food you can buy. My almost 2 year old kid had a cold for a month, then it became worse the past week with several other symptoms including a congested cough, 3 day fever, more difficulty breathing at night, rashes, etc. I guess all that was not enough for the triage nurse to think it was serious because she couldn't help but laugh when I said I know we should go in 3-5 days of fever but I wasn't sure to wait 5 days with all these other symptoms. Skip to the doctor visit, I was told there's a lot of virus going around and they can't tell without doing tests. It's only 3 days, just have her drink lots of fluids. She said it's not RSV or pneumonia yet but come back 5 days if she still has fever. It's 5 days of fever now, went to Gatineau, they wondered why CHEO didn't do any tests (ex. Covid, blood sugar) which took 5 mins for them in triage. They did more tests and found out it was pneumonia (not viral).

There was a 4 hour wait. We knew that going in. There is a kids first clinic that picked us up. We didn't know that it wasn't part of the emergency. We ended up waiting for hours and were constantly bumped. If we would have stayed in emergency we would have been seen so much faster. Ended up leaving when they bumped us from the exam room in the clinic. We had been there over five hours at this point. The whole system is broken over there.we didn't chose to be there either. Our family doctor sent us. In the end we didn't feel treated with dignity at all. They would say 40 minutes and then after 70 minutes move you to a different waiting room. Its emotianlly and physically exhausting. We felt that they were simply trying to make us leave. There is no reason to have 5 different waiting rooms without ever seeing a doctor. The whole system is just ridiculous. It's either incompetence or cruel by design. *** Update, we found out they sent the wrong medical information back to our family doctor. So sorry to whoever's kid had a UTI. Our child wad treated competently by their family doctor. I would avoid this place like the plague.

Well let's see. We arrive at 19h with a '5' hour wait time, it's now 1 in the morning and was told at least another ten hours. Whoever manages this place should be fired. If this was a money making business they'd be bankrupt. A children's hospital that has 1 doctor on during the night. 64 patients currently waiting. And I know this is the status quo based on all the other reviews mentioning the exact same thing. What is wrong with this place. But don't worry, there's a big sign mentioning a new 500 million investment. How about instead, you hire a few more doctors instead of burning tax payer money for a shiny new building. When the nurse starts scratching people of the patient list as they leave because they can't wait sixteen hours they should be ashamed, but I'm sure this happens every night here because she acted so casually about this, literally sick and suffering people leaving because they can't sit in pain for hours on end to see the one doctor they decide to have on. Dispicable.

Came to CHEO yesterday because my 6 week old was breathing hard and grunting. There was 1 other family with older kid in front of me, they triaged him first. I was ok with it since the place was empty. Registration staff were chatting about vacations for about 30 minutes after which they called us to register my child. We were asked to wait in the waiting room, another 20 minutes, then waiting for the doctor for another 1.5 hours. We left since no doctor came and sought private care. Shame on you! This understaffing and covid excuses we keep hearing about are getting too old. Let me remind you that my older kid has autoimmune disease because your pediatrician misdiagnosed him and sent us home, second visit I waited 10 hours while pregnant and after being put on waitlist for 2 hours to get tylenol for my kid's fever, I left, sought private care, and kid was admitted for treatment. You should seek external consultants to optimize your process.

The staff in the ER were great. They were very respectful whenever I had questions and the doctors were very careful and did not rush us. The hospital was also clean considering how busy it was at that time. HOWEVER, THE WAIT TIMES ARE ABSURD. We waited for a total of 10 hours with a 21 month old toddler!! My toddler had difficulty breathing and the triage nurse administered an asthma inhaler to ease the symptoms. But to make parents with small children wait that long is brutal. Hire more doctors especially for midnight shifts because that is when the symptoms worsen for most people and there is a surge of sick patients coming into the hospital. Something must be done to increase patient capacity as well. I was told that one parent was only allowed. How can you expect one parent to wait with a restless toddler for that long? Especially if you have no place to sit comfortably.

First visit to Cheo, awful experience took nearly 2 hours for them to register my 11month old. Shortly after he was finally registered they sent him for an X-ray of his possibly broken ankle. 8.5hours later still waiting for a doctor to look at the results. Went to the nurses station to ask for some pain meds for my son, was asked what time his vitals were last checked? I tell them you never checked… she tells me oh the triage nurse does that during registration… lady pretty sure I would know if you checked my sons vitals. 11.5 hours here now and being told only one doctor until 6am !? So will be MANY hours yet …. I’m very concerned for all the children and lack of care that’s provided also note to some of the nurses… if you don’t like your job find a new one. The way I saw a lot of the nurses speaking to parents was absolutely disgusting.

The doctor's and the nurses are great even though they have been overworked they still do the job with smile on their faces. Now the waiting time is another story probably the worst in the whole wide world. I'm not sure why a child with a chronic cough should stay in the hospital for 24 hours before they are being seen by a doctor that is unacceptable. Then after the doctor finally sees you the doctor tells you ohhh the symptoms are normal in this kind of season just monitor the child if the Symptoms worsen then bring the child back. I think if the leaders and the Prime Minister of this country really don't care about their citizens, because if they truly care then the Prime Minister will make an effort employ doctors and nurses from different countries to come and practice just as the USA and UK does it.

Absolutely the worst experience at CHEO. First of all we were made to wait at 13hrs with no explanation of the wait. The triage nurse was very rude and doesn’t like us asking questions at all. The emergency nurses made it in such a way that they might call up our name anytime and we have to be ready but that didn’t happen for 13hrs. Every time we went to ask the status, it was a different answer we got about how many before the line and if we could meet with the doctor. They make us wait as they are doing some favour. 13 hrs of wait and I’m still waiting to see the doctor. The worst ER system ever and you would think this happens at children hospital

Came to Cheo emergency at 2:30 am and waited the entire night to be seen by a physician. Around 7:15 am a mom came in with a sick child and just because she was a former employee got to go inside the room in 10 minutes. When consulted the nurses that how much longer should I wait for. The nurse told me that the wait time is 8 hours and so far it has only been 5hrs of wait time for your daughter. I do understand that severely sick children will be seen first but just because the mom was a former employee should not be prioritised. It’s a hospital and the rules should apply to each and every patient equally.

Brought my little man to the ER. Waited for almost 7 hours to see a doctor. The services we received on admission override the wait time. The angels missing in heaven are in CHEO. The doctors are kind, reassuring, with great emotional intelligence and professionalism. Nine out of ten of the nurses are dedicated, professional and kind. The volunteers are dedicated and devoted. The energy from the whole team de stresses parents and kids. Lots of games to distract children from their pain. When you focus on all that positive energy , the rude cafe staff won’t get to you.

When I first got here they told me 7-8h wait time, I waited 10 hours then they told me it’s 14hours and still wasn’t our turn, when I went to see the millions of nurses that were there I was told some people wait 22 hours. What kinda hospital makes you wait 22 hours to see a doctor. And all the older kids with broken bones passed before us while my 2 year old son had a high fever and an ear infection. Talk about priorities. It was so dirty too. I left this horrible hospital and drove 2 hours to another hospital. Worst childrens hospital ever!!!!

Waiting in the car since 9:30pm July 21, 2021. Outside of CHEO emergency in parking lot and it is now 3:21am July 22, 2021. Yes that is right, almost 6 hours, my wife and daughter were registered before 9:30pm July 21 2021 and nurse mentioned it will be around 2-2.5 hrs wait. We do not visit hospital generally to know what's norm, nor are we from this area to know how long is the wait in general. All I know is that this is ridiculous and these standards should not be acceptable anywhere unless you are living in a cave.

It's really hard to see all of the comments regarding long wait times. We have a phenomenal health care system that actually allows us access to doctors whenever we need, with a lack of cost compared to other countries. The most ill are seen first. My daughter was airlifted to CHEO from a much smaller hospital a few hours away. We have been blown away by the hard work, kindness, generosity and attention to detail all of the doctors and nurses have shown us. We have never had a hospital experience as easy as this one.

We went to the Kids Come First Care clinic. The booking was fairly easy! New appointments get released at midnight. They took us in right away and we got put in a room. You can go for anything non emergency related i believe. The nurses were super friendly. One of the nurses took out her own personal phone and played Cocomelon for my toddler who was upset. She was given stickers and a popsicle as well! I liked that we got to stay in our own room for the whole time and didn’t have to wait in the waiting room.

Can’t even discuss the quality of care because my two year old, with what seems like a broken arm/wrist, never even got to see a doctor. My wife got there, it took over an hour to get triaged, they were told it would be a 10 hour wait, waited 5 hours only to be told that it would actually be another 10 hours. The hospital staff did give him Advil for the pain so that gets them the 1 star. These kind of wait times are insane and it’s definitely not the staffs fault.

Went to CHEO after my son ended up with a "buckle fracture" from football. The doctors and nurses were the best I have ever dealt with. They had genuine smiles on their faces and really cared for my son. The initial wait was a bit long, but once we spoke with the first nurse everything went smoothly. We arrived at 10pm, had XRAYs, was put in a cast and on our way by 210am. We were so very happy to go to CHEO as opposed to other hospitals which were closer to us.

Staff and doctors are outstanding, caring and make sure that every bit of support and treatment is provided with utmost importance to the patients, one of the best hospital I would say in the eastern hemisphere on North America..Iam grateful for the commitment shown to my daughter's treatment when she was hardly a month old and was battling a severe infection..I have respect and admiration for each and every staff present at this hospital.

21 years in the CAF, never seen overbooked clinics like CHEO's. Somehow it's expected that parents take a full day off to make a 1030-1130 appt, in this case with vision / C8. Several families booked for 1030, one ophthalmologist for everyone which means it's 1220 and my 6 year old still hasn't been assessed --- for a s-c-h-e-d-u-l-e-d appointment, which we arrived at 1025 hrs for. As if parents don't have jobs to get back to

Incompetent nurses and misleading website. The website clearly states that the environment must be kept peanut free. There's not one place in here that offers peanut free food. When I asked nurse "Kelly Dalgity" she said they couldn't do anything about it and to just take an epi pen. Insane that a nurse would tell someone to risk anaphylaxis as any basic healthcare worker knows someone could die from an anaphalaxis allergy.

My son was struggling with a fever, wheezing cough, and breathing difficulties. We had several sleepless nights before finally going to CHEO. Nurse Catherine Butler was very attentive and supportive. Dr. Irfan Moledina was highly attentive, patiently addressed my questions, quickly identified the problem, and helped my son. I want to express my deep gratitude for their care and support.

The mental health crisis team here are terrible. Some of the nurses were nice but others lied to me, broke confidentiality and accused me of things I had not done. I waited for 14 hours just to talk to a resident who only made things worse, he was incredibly rude and didn’t help at all. He was also incompetent, I have no idea how he is where he is.

It is nice to see that when a true emergency, the system can move into action. My son was admitted on a Monday and had emergency surgery on Wednesday. Everyone has been kind, patient, and understanding. Thank you to the neurosurgery team for all their hard work and support for us and our child through a very difficult time. Highly recommended!

After a horrible experience and a mistreatment from a referred Pediatric dental clinic , I was referred to CHEO dental instead. My 2 year old son had a dental surgery there. Dr. Gosselin is an amazing, gentle, phenomenal doctor who cares for her patients regardless of anything. Staff were all helpful and caring! Thank you so much CHEO!

If I could give a 0 star I would specifically for how rude a staff member was to me. I was fundraising door to door and at 296 first avenue in Ottawa a woman told me she works at Cheo and was extremely rude and said that “taking money from cheo” for other charities is “not cool”. I would recommend going to SickKids Hospital instead.

Waiting times are long but the care is personal and friendly. The doctors and nurses are great, making the kids as comfortable as possible. Funding and staff shortages are a problem but the average wait time in any Ontario hospital ER is approx 20 hrs. Consider contacting the Ministry of Health and donating to a fundraiser.

Wait time is terrible. One nurse shouldn’t be in healthcare for how rude she is. Daughter Hasn’t been able to eat for the last few days other than liquids. But that apparently isn’t an emergency. Should of went somewhere else instead of sitting here now for 6.5 hours and still haven’t been seen

Absolutely despicable place. Making people wait 16 hours with ONE doctor in ER for children?!?!? Not a person in sight to ask anything, and pure disregard. Abhorrent. Truly not enough words to express my utter disgust with the inner workings of this place. Honestly shameful, cruel and inhumane!

the two stars are for the good care you’ll receive…. if you are ever seen. The ER never had enough doctors… it seems like they need to find more doctors because it’s unacceptable that each time i attempt to take my child there, they have one doctor working and the wait time is close to 10 hours

I hate reading bad reviews on this hospital. They saved my life when I was 6 years old. I was there for 2 weeks after finding out I had really bad phenomena and caught it late. Staff were very nice and is a hospital me and my brother went to whenever we were sick.

Being told to grab a mask at entrance, I don't put it on because pandemic is over and no emergency exist. No issues walking around the hospital without mask, aside from everyone else wearing mask. Lady from ophthalmologist told me twice to put my mask on.

bad service they don't care about if the child if suffering from hurt his finger five hours just she is crying i asked them three times about she is crying form hurt they answered you must waite two years really you must study about that

If I could give 0 I would! 4 and a half hours wait to see a doctor and im still waiting. Unfortunately we are stuck with 3rd world health care and we can't do nothing about it. So at least they will know what we think about it.

The doctors, nurses and staff are incredible. Most importantly they are thorough. You can go out with confidence that your child will be ok. Yes, the wait times are really long but you need to really blame Doug Ford for that.

Last time I visited cheo 5 years ago. Today I am back with my nephew. No change at all still an amazing service from everyon. The nurses and doctors are absolute angels! Thank you for the hard work

Long waiting hours in emergency room, shortage of medical personnel is obvious but once you get admitted you cant complain about services. Getting an appointment to see a specialist is a hustle.

Staff were amazing......doctors knowledgeable.......I give 2 stars for the 8+ hours wait time.......thats just plain cruel. A children hospital should not make kids wait this long..

My friend took their 2 month old baby who was continuosly crying to the hospital nut was never seen by a doctor for over 7 hrs. Sorry to say the service.is very poor.

There's one spot in the entire hospital where you can sit at a table to eat, with only 3 tables, which is perfect for a small clinic in moose jaw.

The best children's hospital! Great Doctors, nurses and staff. Have helped my children many times when it was really needed.

The nurses and doctors are amazing. Sure ER wait times can be long but the staff are amazing.