Triage Liaison Physician Program Begins at Select Alberta ERs

a stethoscope and a blank medical folder resting on a triage desk, with an out-of-focus view of a hospital emergency waiting area in the background, natural eve

AI-generated illustration; not a photograph of the reported event.

Alberta Launches Triage Liaison Physician Program at Select Hospitals

After months of delays, Alberta has begun implementing its triage liaison physician program across six of its hospital emergency rooms. Premier Danielle Smith announced the launch on her provincewide radio show, stating that teams of triage physicians began work as of Saturday. The rollout fulfills a promise made in January by the premier’s former hospitals minister to improve emergency room (ER) patient assessments and address long wait times.

Six Facilities Now Have Triage Doctors in Place

The six locations where triage liaison physicians are now operational include the Grey Nuns, University of Alberta, and Misericordia hospitals in Edmonton; Rockyview and South Health Campus hospitals in Calgary; and the Sturgeon Community Hospital in St. Albert. According to Hospital and Surgical Health Services Minister Adriana LaGrange, approximately 25 physicians have signed up for the new program so far.

Program Goals: Improving Patient Assessment and Flow

Minister LaGrange explained that triage liaison physicians step in after initial assessment by a triage nurse. The physician can immediately direct a patient’s care, such as ordering blood work, X-rays, writing prescriptions, or deciding on discharge. LaGrange expressed hope that this approach would reduce excessive waits in ERs, citing reports of patients waiting five to eight hours or more.

Dr. Sayeh Zielke, interim CEO of Acute Care Alberta, emphasized the safety aspect of the program: "Making sure that we limit poor outcomes in the emergency department with having triage teams and triage physicians taking care of the patients and monitoring their status in the waiting room while they're waiting." Zielke explained that this new approach allows for earlier intervention if a patient’s condition worsens while waiting.

Challenges in Staffing and Implementation

Despite the program’s rollout, some ER physicians have voiced concerns about the sustainability and scope of the initiative. Dr. Scott MacLean, an emergency doctor at Edmonton’s Royal Alexandra Hospital, noted that few physicians are signing up for the additional triage shifts, resulting in significant gaps in the staffing schedules. MacLean said, “25 doctors can't cover 180 shifts a month" across six sites, calling the announcement premature.

Dr. Louis Hugo Francescutti, another ER doctor at the Royal Alexandra Hospital and a professor at the University of Alberta, echoed concerns about insufficient staffing and system-wide pressures. "Creating that position doesn't create any new beds,” he said, warning that the program does not address deeper issues such as bed shortages and delays in hospital admissions. Francescutti believes measuring the program’s impact will require tracking if it reduces the number of patients leaving without being seen, improves patient flow, and lessens adverse events.

Role of the Alberta Medical Association

Melissa Pennell, spokesperson for the Alberta Medical Association (AMA), stated that the organization’s emergency medicine section worked closely with government and health service leaders to finalize the service agreement and allow for program implementation. However, she clarified that participation in the program is voluntary and up to individual emergency physicians. Operational delivery is now the responsibility of health service organizations.

Background: Program Sparked by Patient Death and Public Concerns

The triage liaison physician program was initially announced in January, following the widely reported death of 44-year-old Prashant Sreekumar, who waited nearly eight hours for care at Edmonton’s Grey Nuns Community Hospital in December 2025. Alberta ER doctors compiled examples of other potentially preventable deaths that occurred in hospital waiting rooms around the same time. The program’s rollout was delayed while the provincial government and the AMA negotiated contracts and operational details. A public inquiry into Sreekumar’s death is scheduled to resume in December.