Emergency departments across Canada are under strain, facing rising patient volumes, staff shortages, and increasing pressure to improve wait times. As hospitals search for ways to ease the burden, a growing number are turning to EmergConnect, a digital triage platform that’s helping cut intake times by as much as 60%.
The system offers real-time wait estimates, streamlines nurse workflows, and enables patients to begin their emergency visit before they even arrive, positioning EmergConnect as a promising early solution for one of the country’s most persistent healthcare challenges.
“We’ve seen ER triage times cut by up to 60% with our platform,” says Ron Galaev, founder and CEO of EmergConnect. “It’s about giving nurses back their time and giving patients the clarity they deserve—because uncertainty shouldn’t be part of seeking care.”
Hospitals using EmergConnect allow patients to begin their emergency department visit before they even walk through the door, or comfortably in their seat in the waiting room. Individuals can enter symptoms and details through their phones, register in advance, and receive an estimate of how long they might wait. Nurses then review the information in the EmergConnect portal and send it straight into their hospitals’ system with just one click.
The company worked for eight months with national and provincial health groups to create a tool compatible with current triage standards. The platform also includes tools for paramedics, to reduce offload times, and a redirection system that directs patients to less crowded hospitals nearby or for lower acuity patients alternative care options altogether.
“When we first started analyzing emergency departments, we were shocked to discover nurses had to click 64 times just to intake a single patient, we’ve reduced that to just four clicks” says Marina Gavrilov, CTO of EmergConnect.
Hospitals say the platform reduces staff pressure by cutting out manual steps from the intake process. Hospitals use EmergConnect’s tools to direct patients who do not need emergency care to nearby clinics, easing demand. Its AI-based predictions give individualized wait times, tailored to the hospital’s current situation.
“By eliminating manual steps and guiding non-urgent cases to nearby clinics, we’re helping hospitals ease pressure on staff while ensuring patients get the right care, faster,” Galaev explains. “Our AI doesn’t just estimate wait times,it personalizes them based on what’s actually happening inside the hospital.”
The company raised $2 million CAD in late 2024 and plans to expand to British Columbia and Quebec. It also considers tackling problems facing the U.S. system next. “We help hospitals solve one of the biggest day-to-day problems they face,” Galaev said. EmergConnect’s leaders believe the tool will serve more hospitals seeking to improve efficiency and patient experience.
Four large hospital systems already use the product, and the company says interest is growing quickly, with aims at having the majority of the Canadian healthcare system covered in the coming years. As emergency departments continue to face staffing shortages and surging demand, tools like EmergConnect are becoming part of more conversations between hospital administrators and frontline staff.
