Horizon Santé-Nord -Salle d'urgence - Sudbury, Ontario

Don K.

The only reason I am giving the HSN emergency department of this hospital a five star rating is the care and attention we received from the doctors and nursing staff once we got past the triage and waiting area.
After years of not needing such services, we had two occasions in the past few months to need them.
The first occasion was in early February 2025 where Dr. Moore attended us. An extra test was ordered by Dr. Moore to confirm what was happening and when we saw Dr. Moore, we received a thorough, empathetic and caring examination. The time was taken to answer all our questions and an additional action was needed which was promptly dealt with by the nursing and admin staff.
In March 2025 we again needed the services of HSN emergency department. This time, Dr. Fortino attended to us and we received the same level of thoroughness, empathy and all our questions about the condition were answered promptly and without any hint of 'annoyance' that older doctors can sometimes exhibit. Lucky for us, both doctors were young (relative to our ages) which might explain the very positive attitude shown by these two excellent physicians. Hipocrates himself would give both of them a big thumbs up!
However, one cannot speak about an HSN emergency department visit without comment about the triage and waiting area.
When one first comes in, I echo the many comments others have made. The place is run down, seats need reupholstering, it's dirty and on the first occasion the place was so crowded that people coming in had nowhere to sit.
Why was it so crowded? I'm glad you asked.
On that first occasion there were at least 6 people, (which were obviously drug addicted and/or with mental health issues) in the waiting area that had occupied seats and the hospital’s transport chairs. Some were sleeping and some had all their belongings with them. The staff and security guards were addressing these people by their first names so it was obvious that this was not their first visit. Some are just hanging out since it's a warm place and the staff do give them drinks and food occasionally but some come in, register and complain of 'pain' for which they would need pain killer medication. We are informed that a single registration costs 'the system' $75O. One of these people occupied the only washroom for quite a long time. She came out looking high on something. It was not infrequent that staff and security guards were put on 'high alert' since one of these people would get agitated and in a few cases they became violent.
In the evening, after we were done at the emergency department, walking to the car parking lot, these people are also standing around outside the hospital itself and solicit anyone walking by for money. Some are more aggressive than others. The less aggressive ones seem to be high on something or other. Some are just bent over. We felt unsafe as there were no security guards outside.
The first visit in February was 9 hours and the one in March was 5 hours. We understand that an emergency department is NOT "first come, first served". That's why they have a triage system. The word triage is from the French 'trier' which means to sort as in sorting into categories of priority. That is fair and logical.
However the wait times are, according to some staff that spoke candidly, due to being understaffed. Any additional burden on such a system, especially by people that habitually frequent the emergency department in the hopes of getting a pain medication will, obviously slow the whole thing down. Remove that 'additional burden' and the understaffed situation will improve. The back end, meaning where the nurses and doctors give patient care, is very good. The front end is a trainwreck.
This is on the ADMINISTRATION OF THIS HOSPITAL.!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is on them. Get it fixed!!!!!!!!!!!!

SJ C.

Developed bells palsy

Was honestly hesitant to come back to this hospital after I had a nurse tell me that my muscle season was all in my head which was an adverse reaction to halitol.

Aside from my other visits, this time, they were actually kind and not rude.

.. but, I was given eye drops and told to tape my eyes shut and I was never shown how and spent the last 2 days improperly taping my eyeshadow using videos online while I'm finding out now that I should have had an eye doctor or a nurse show me how to do it properly because I may cause more damage to my eye than necessary.

There's two huge things about this hospital that make it a bad hospital and not worth going to
1. Rude staff which seems to be taken care of.. But maybe I just caught a good day?
2. Lack of care that covers all aspects of a patient's illness or injury, care is often half-assed because no tests are run And they don't bother to show you home care. Your left trying to figure out the proper way with zero training for days on end while you wait to see a family doctor or follow up practitioner. It's absolutely ridiculous.

It's like going to a restaurant ordering food and they don't give you any utensils and the food comes out inedible.

This hospital never ceases to disappoint me, unfortunately. It's been this way since 2018.

Lil M.

Recently waited 8 hours to see a doctor… spent 11.5 hours in total there. Waiting room is dirty, under construction, and overcrowded. Tests were thorough and staff were courteous. After receiving a test result next day, Dr. left a message advising I needed a drug prescription and wanted to know which pharmacy to fax it… said she would call me back… 24 hours later I am still waiting. This is how people fall through the cracks. We have to push to get our needs properly met.

Bailey M.

Get ready to wait at least 8 hours before the move you to a different waiting room where you can now wait another 4 hours before you get any kind of answers or actual help. Not to mention the power trip crazy security that give off the personality of little man syndrome come to life. I can't believe how horrible it is. I watched a woman collapsed after trying constantly to alert that she needs help and after she collapsed the staff stuck her in a wheel chair and left her in the waiting room. The woman could barely talk and if it wasn't for the kind people sitting near her when staff called her name and hour later she might have been left like that until the power tripping security kicked her out. Oh yeah and make sure you're quick in the bathroom or the security with bang on the door and tell you to get out because obviously you're up to no good in you take more than 2 minutes to use the bathroom while you're in pain. I could go on and on about how absolutely horrible it is but what's the point? Nothing will be done and it will just get worse, so keep in mind if you break a bone or think you might be having a heart attack remember, they will say you can wait and stick you in a full room then watch you struggle and even when you collapse it won't mean anything to them.

Krystyna

Dreadful hospital. Emergency is filthy. Your wait will be a deplorable amount of hours unless you know someone or are sent through WSIB. Understaffed. Terrible organization. I've been twice and never seen an actual doctor. I had been dropped off and picked up because we have livestock and being ill isn't an option. Both times I waited 5 hours. Our animals needs come first. Unfortunately, as a human I didn’t rank the same.

My frustration is this, if they are going to see everyone else before you, why don't they just let you know. Be honest, yes, other people have dire needs. Send home the ones that they feel can wait to see their actual doctor or go to a walk-in clinic rather than having loads of people hanging about in an environment that is depressing and a hive of germs.

I would have been served just as well at the relic of a building down the road. At least I could have hung out with the wildlife that's probably in there.

I'm still in acute pain but I'd rather be in pain at home than there. Both experiences have been two of my worst. The latter more so because I was bent over in pain and could hardly walk. I still can hardly walk.

I worked as a Personal Support Worker for years and now my body is broken. I'd like you all to know that we don't have disability, unless we buy our own insurance. We don't have a pension for when we're broken and can no longer work. Our spouses pay everything until we are at a pension age. Advice to anyone thinking of being a PSW, become a nurse. Better wages, better care and pension for you.

One thing I saw looking at all of the sad, pathetic faces in that disgusting waiting room was the lack of autonomy and empathy given to everyone. I do understand. When you have that many people in a room it looks like a war zone. Only we're not in a war. And there wasn't a Florence Nightingale feel anywhere. We are living in a civilized country that is supposed to be one of the best and generally, I would say yes it is.

How do I conclude here? We all know what the conclusion is. We have 5 star hospitals in Toronto like Sunnybrook, St. Michaels and Sick Kids that are amazing and then we have the hospitals in outside cities that don't even deserve a 1 star. It won't improve, it's been spiralling downwards for years. I'd like to think there's at least a mattress to land on at the end of the fall but with the lack of beds that won't be the case. You'll be hitting cold concrete, just like the hard truth that our medical system is a failure in many places.

Meanwhile, I'll struggle on and if I don't get any better, I’ll go to a small town like Cobourg Hospital which served us well for many years. Sometimes, smaller is better.

Emily

I would write 0 if I could. My girlfriend is experiencing seizures or myoclonic tremors (we’re still waiting to find out) and had several episodes in the waiting room. I ran to a nurse to tell her what happened and she said just sit down and wait. She then had another episode lasting around a minute, where kind people around us had to come and help out. it wasn’t until she was basically done the episode where three nurses came to basically just help her back into the chair. Not to mention an officer as well because obviously she’s up to no good 🙄. when she was feeling another one coming on i alerted the nurse where she said in a condescending voice “oh i know exactly who you’re talking about… she’ll be fine she’s completely stable” she thought my girlfriend was either faking her episodes or was some kind of addict. Note we are 20 and she is black (not surprised she was discriminated against and profiled). we then left (because what a joke) and went to the walk in where the doctor witnessed another episode and was immediately taken aback and referred her to a neurologist and told us to go to espanola ASAP. There, she saw a doctor almost within 2 hours, where he also referred her for an EEG, MRI, and CT as he is also concerned about epilepsy or myoclonic episodes. What a ridiculous racist joke sudbury’s hospital is. Go to espanola.

Rob H.

Come on down to social night here at the Sudbury ER, don't expect to be seen, instead you can hear all about how creepy my little pony is for seven hours and listen to people who are afraid of lint talk non stop about being afraid of lint, the Mandala effect, drug dosages, are ponies frogs? what does horse meat taste like? I'll drive anywhere in Ontario next emergency, Which is likely on its way with all these stunted adults refusing to cover their mouths when coughing.

Cass J.

I wouldn’t even give this place 1 start but I have to in order to leave a review.
Attended the emergency room as per my family doctors orders for my 6 month old son. Suspected of having RSV.
Low and behold I sat in the waiting room for 10 hours and another two hours on a gurney beside the nurses station. My son came in with a 102° fever, they administered advil at 1:30 pm and by the time I was even brought to the back to be seen his fever had again spiked to 102°. He was screaming, crying & inconsolable. He was so dehydrated he barely wet his diaper in those hours we waited, everything he drank he threw up immediately. He then did it again while waiting on the gurney.

The only reason I got taken back at 10 hours was because my sons nose started bleeding, and he was screaming and crying.
Once in the back they administered zofran for nausea, tylenol and advil for his fever which upon discharge was still 99.5°F.
In those hours of waiting, I seen a man come in for an injured ankle, while waiting it appears he suffered a stroke and his wife kept frantically trying to get him examined by a nurse but he still wasn’t examined by the time i went into the back.

There was a man screaming in the hallway of the waiting room for 6 of my 10 hour wait if not longer. He was vomitting, crying, yelling begging and pleading for help clearly in immense pain, they made him wait. And let him lay in the hallway.

The nurses and doctors were wonderful, but I think that was the most horrific thing to experience. Hallways lined with gurneys of people. Elderly people receiving blood transfusions in the hallways.

From now on unless brought by ambulance I will just take the trip to Espanola or sturgeon falls. Truly was a horrible experience.