After patients posted photos of hospital wait times of over 17 hours, Alberta Health Services (AHS) has started a surgical wait-list with automated calls.

Patients on surgical wait-lists in the Central Zone of Alberta Health Services (AHS) can expect an automated phone call or voicemail as part of an initiative to update surgical wait-lists. 

Patients will be asked to confirm AHS has contacted the correct person. As part of the process to confirm wait-list status, the surgical wait-list management team will ask for the patient’s provincial personal health number and birthdate to confirm their identity. 

Patients who hang up or do not call the number back will not see their position on the wait-list affected.  

Patients are reminded AHS will never ask for financial information or for any personal information other than your provincial personal health number or birthdate during these calls. If the phone call or voicemail asks for additional information, such as a social insurance number or banking information, do not provide that information or return the call. 

To help patients determine that the call is not a scam, a webpage has been created outlining the scripts being used for each zone.  

This initiative is part of AHS’s surgical recovery plan, which includes other strategies to reduce wait-lists for non-urgent scheduled surgeries. The first phase of this pilot in the AHS Edmonton Zone reduced the surgical wait-list in pilot departments by 5.6 per cent. 

Alberta Health Services is the provincial health authority responsible for planning and delivering health supports and services for more than four million adults and children living in Alberta. Its mission is to provide a patient-focused, quality health system that is accessible and sustainable for all Albertans.