The emergency room at the Hospital for Sick Children saw 1,200 children more in December 2018 than it did a year before, says the head of the hospital’s emergency department.

“These are really unprecedented volumes,” says Dr. Jason Fischer, head of emergency medicine at SickKids.

Last month, the emergency room saw more than 9,000 children, up from 7,800 patients in December 2017. In December, the ER expects to see around 260 young patients a day, but this year that number ballooned to 320.

To cope with a growing wave of patients, the hospital introduced what it calls a surge clinic a few years ago. There, staff help patients who need non-intensive care, in an effort to take the pressure off of emergency room staff. This year, that clinic was also swamped. It saw 2,000 children in December, compared to 700 patients in December 2017 — a 186 per cent increase.

“Despite our best efforts, we were still overwhelmed,” Dr. Fischer says.

With a majority of walk-in clinics either closed or operating on reduced hours this holiday, hospitals in the GTA saw a record number of visits, causing nightmare wait times for patients. CityNews reported Thursday that people were waiting upwards of seven hours to see a doctor.

Dr. Fischer said there are multiple factors behind the surge during the holiday season, but when they speak to patients, it usually comes down to three things.

“Access, families have trouble accessing care over the holidays with primary care clinics closed. Secondly, they have trouble navigating the system during the holidays with closures,” Dr. Fischer said. “Third is communication. During the holidays, they have trouble communicating with physicians and they end up coming to the emergency department.

He added peak-period doctors, who are rarely used, were called in 80 per cent of the time this holiday season.

Walk-in clinics, Fischer adds, would definitely help with these surges. He said he’d like to see changes in the way they operate and additional resources so the clinics are able to stay open during the holidays.

While the holidays have been a busy time for SickKids, they have also seen a steady spike in the number of patients each year due to the growing population.

The hospital added 10 unfunded hospital beds this year just to keep up with demand.

“No one is more frustrated when a child waits than the providers in the emergency care department, but we recognize the challenges are working hard to make sure timely care is delivered,” said Dr. Fischer.

He also share some advice for families before racing off to a local hospital.

“In anticipation of the holidays, really ensure that your doctor’s office is closed and not accessible. Often, there are back-up systems within some of theses clinics that patients just aren’t aware of,” he said. “Talking to your doctor about what to do is key.

Dr. Fischer also recommends using AboutKidsHelp which has a lot of information that can help parents decide when they might need to seek emergency care for their child.