Cataract Surgery Wait Times: Reducing Delays Through Coordinated Care

Timely access to surgical care remains a provincial priority as Ontario works to reduce surgical backlogs, improve patient experience and ease administrative burden for clinicians. As part of Ontario Health’s work to improve access to surgical care across the province, Cataract Central Intake – delivered through the Waterloo Wellington Regional Coordination Centre (WWRCC) and hosted by Langs Community Health Centre – demonstrates how coordinated intake models can improve access to cataract surgery across the region.

Seeing the Impact of Coordinated Care More Clearly

Since launching in April 2021, Cataract Central Intake has delivered significant improvements in surgical access, quality and efficiency.

The program has processed more than 21,000 referrals from over 900 referring clinicians, all of which were processed within one business day – significantly reducing administrative burden for clinicians and surgical offices. More than 95 per cent of referrals arrive complete, minimizing back and forth communication and helping to avoid delays. All cataract surgeons across Waterloo-Wellington participate in this model, which creates a fully coordinated system among participants.

Since its implementation, wait times have decreased by 454 days (15 months), dropping from an average of 672 days (22 months) in November 2022 to 220 days (seven months) as of September 2025.

Helping Patients Access Care When They Need It

Cataract Central Intake provides a single, standardized pathway for non-urgent cataract referrals across Waterloo-Wellington. The program receives referrals from clinicians and validates completeness at intake, ensuring accurate and efficient processing from the start. Each patient is then matched to a surgeon using real-time wait-time data, which supports timely access and equitable distribution of cases. The central intake team also works closely with surgeons’ offices to prevent duplicate referrals and support smooth scheduling. Throughout the process, the program provides consistent monitoring, reporting and region‑wide oversight of demand and capacity to help maintain a coordinated and transparent system.

Patients may choose to wait for a specific surgeon, select the first available surgeon or prioritize care closer to home. Those who opt for the first available surgeon experience the shortest waits, highlighting how transparent wait-time information and informed choice can support timely access without compromising patient autonomy.

Reducing Wait Times for Other Surgical Procedures

Cataract Central Intake is part of a broader suite of centralized pathways offered by WWRCC, including orthopedics, diabetes, and the Ontario Seniors Dental Care Program. To support the expansion of these programs, WWRCC has developed a framework to guide the development and implementation of regional central intake models and partners with other regions as a mentor to support engagement, implementation and ongoing optimization.

As health systems continue to face growing demand, Cataract Central Intake and the WWRCC team is showing how coordinated, data-driven intake models can reduce wait times, improve patient experience and strengthen system performance.

This work is advancing the Patients Before Paperwork initiative, a transformative project that will enable people across Ontario to have access to faster and more convenient care and support the reduction of administrative burden faced by front line health care providers so they can focus on what matters most – delivering patient care.