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System Performance

Measuring Wait Times for Eye Surgeries


Priority levels and target times for eye surgeries in Ontario are set by surgeons, specialists and health care administrators across the province, based on clinical evidence, to guide treatment decisions and to improve patient access and outcomes.

Wait times for eye surgeries including cataract, corneal transplant, glaucoma, and vitrectomy (retina) surgeries, in Ontario are measured and reported. Those wait times are for two periods. (Data excludes patients who did not have the surgery after their first appointment with a surgeon.)

Time to patient's first eye specialist appointment: How long patients waited from an eye specialist or surgeon or central intake office receiving the referral from the patient's doctor, to the patient's first eye specialist appointment.

Priority level of patient's condition

Clinical description

Target time* to patient's first specialist appointment

Priority 1

High probability of disease occurrence or progression impacting morbidity or mortality.

Intractable agonizing symptoms

Patient sees surgeon within 7 days of referral received

Priority 2

Moderate probability of disease progression. Low probability of disease occurrence or progression impacting morbidity or mortality.

Patient sees surgeon within 30 days of referral received

Priority 3

All patients who do not meet the criteria of Priority 2 or Priority 4

Patient sees surgeon within 90 days of referral received

Priority 4

Minimal risk of disease progression impacting morbidity/mortality

Patient sees surgeon within 182 days of referral received

Time from decision to having eye surgery: How long patients waited from deciding with the surgeon or specialist to proceed with the surgery, to having the eye surgery. These wait times vary depending on the type of eye surgery. (See table below.)

Priority level of the patient's condition

Target time** from decision to having cataract, cornea - other, ocular trauma, ophthalmic plastics, orbital surgery, retina - other, strabismus and glaucoma (eye pressure lowering surgery) - other surgeries

Target time** from decision to having corneal transplant surgery

Target time** from decision to having glaucoma -eye pressure lowering surgery

Target time** from decision to having vitrectomy surgery

Target time** from decision to having combination cataract and other procedures surgery

Priority 1

Patient has surgery within 24 hours of decision; not included in the data

Patient has surgery within 24 hours of decision

Patient has surgery within 24 hours of decision

Patient has surgery within 24 hours of decision

Patient has surgery within 24 hours of decision

Priority 2

Patient has surgery within 42 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 28 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 14 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 7 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 7 – 42 days of decision

Priority 3

Patient has surgery within 84 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 84 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 42 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 42 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 42 - 84 days weeks of decision

Priority 4

Patient has surgery within 182 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 182 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 112 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 84 days of decision

Patient has surgery within 84 - 182 days of decision

*The target time within which 9 out of 10 patients are seen.

**The target time within which 9 out of 10 patients are treated.

See what this means for patients

Measurement Numbers for Eye Surgery Wait Times

Data for the wait times for eye surgeries in Ontario is reported using these measurement numbers:

  • The average number of days patients waited; a lower number is better.
  • The percentage of patients seen, or treated, within target time; a higher percentage is better.

Data Sources for Eye Surgery Wait Times

The data comes from the Wait Time Information System™ (WTIS™), Cancer Care Ontario.

TIME TO PATIENT'S FIRST EYE SURGICAL APPOINTMENT

How long patients waited from surgeon or central intake office receiving the referral, to the patient's first surgical appointment

Learn more
doctor consulting with patient who has cancer

TIME FROM DECISION TO HAVING EYE SURGERY

How long patients waited from the surgery decision to having eye surgery

Learn more
two surgeons looking at a patient’s scan

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