For the week ending October 12, 2026 (Week 42), Quebec's emergency departments maintained a high provincial average stretcher occupancy rate of 85%. Across the 120 reporting facilities, a total of 1,657 patients were actively waiting to be seen, while 4,088 patients were present in emergency rooms statewide.
Severe overcrowding is heavily concentrated in major urban and suburban health regions. Laval reported the highest stretcher occupancy in the province at 147%, driven by heavy load at Hôpital de la Cité-de-la-Santé. Laurentides and Montérégie both recorded 124% stretcher occupancy, closely followed by Chaudière-Appalaches (121%), Montréal (120%), and Outaouais (111%). Montréal alone accounted for 323 waiting patients, while Montérégie saw 287 waiting.
At the facility level, Hôpital de Saint-Jérôme in Laurentides led the province with 67 patients waiting and a staggering 168% stretcher occupancy rate. Other high-pressure centers include Hôpital Charles-Le Moyne (62 waiting, 114% stretcher occupancy), Hôpital de Saint-Eustache (58 waiting, 169% stretcher occupancy), and Hôpital Pierre-Boucher (54 waiting, 145% stretcher occupancy). Conversely, regions like Mauricie et Centre-du-Québec, Nord-du-Québec, and Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine experienced minimal strain during the same period.