This Thursday the Ottawa Hospital announced the launch of the Emergency Department Reporting System at www. ontariowaittimes. com.

The local hospitals have also welcomed other provincial initiatives including the Wait Times Strategy, the Aging at Home Strategy, Tele-Health and Health-Care Connect, in an attempt to strengthen emergency wait time performance.

"Our government is creating an unprecedented level of transparency and accountability in hospital emergency care with the public reporting of time spent in the ER," said Health and Long-Term Care Minister David Caplan.

"We are committed to lowering ER times by providing alternate options for patients, improving ER performance and ensuring more hospital beds are available in a more timely fashion."

At present the provincial emergency stay for nine out of 10 such cases is 13.5 hours, while the new target is to make it eight hours.