Toronto Uncovered

I am afflicted with an unfortunate combination of being overly active and extremely accident prone. In addition to this, I also manage to come down with weird, unexpected  illnesses or allergies from time to time. Friends have coined my as a ‘walking disaster’ and I can honestly say there is never a dull moment. In the past year alone, I have dislocated a shoulder, sprained my ankle and foot, broken a toe, thrown out my back, injured both knees, sported a black eye, and had food poisoning more than once. I’m even writing this post on my half hidden Blackberry from the Emergency Room of St. Michael’s Hospital (apparently afflicted with a corneal ulcer, a lovely bi-product from last week’s black eye).

This affliction has made me very well versed in the medical, physiotherapy, emergency and walk-in services of Toronto. Below is a list  of the best places to go and others to avoid at all costs.

1. Walk-In Clinics: I have been to a ton of these all over the downtown core. My favourite by far, and the one I continue to go back to time and again, is the Patient Networks at Yonge and Richmond. This walk-in is clean and I’ve never had to wait longer than thirty to forty minutes (which is almost unheard of in walk-in-world). By now I have seen most of the doctors and been satisfied with all of them. Sometimes they will even take follow-up calls.

Bay Wellesley Medical Services and Queens Park Health are also reliable walk-ins, but do have longer wait times than Patient Networks. If you’re a student, I still say that University of Toronto’s health clinic is one of the best in the city.

If possible, try to avoid the walk-in at Bay College Medical. The wait here is always outrageous and I never feel like the doctors are paying any attention to what I say. College Care Walk-In Clinic at at College and Spadina is also a little bit dodgy. Expect long waits  and questionably clean waiting rooms. I’ve also had a bad experience giving blood at The Doctor’s Office (third time is the charm, doesn’t fly when you’re sticking my arm with needles).

2. Physiotherapy: I have been a long time advocate of Athletes Care. I go to the Yonge and King location, however, they have a number of others throughout the city. Each location also caters to massage and chiropractic needs, offering a good one-stop-shop for all your aches and pains.

3. Hospitals: As I mentioned, I am currently at St. Michael’s Hospital. The process here is a little hectic. First, finding the ER isn’t as easy as it sounds. It does not attach to other wings or entrances, so you must enter from Shuter and Victoria.  Second, registration involves a series of mini interviews by both a nurse and administrative staff. Once you are  adorned with a fancy St. Mike’s bracelet, the real wait begins. This area of the city brings in a lot of dodgy characters, and the hospital itself is fairly run down and disorganized. The doctors and specialists have taken good care of me, but after a six and a half hour wait I probably won’t be back.

I have been to Mount Sinai Hospital a few times and will definitely return. It is clean and the wait times are reasonable. I am also a fan of Women’s College Hospital at College and Elizabeth.

One hospital to avoid if you can is Toronto Western Hospital. After a visit to my sick grandma there last year, I left with the impression that patient care was not a top priority.

I am always interested to hear where other people go and what spots have A grades, or big fat fails. Are you a clutz like me? Any tips or advice??

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