Toronto's Population Boom Turning Into a Hospital Shortage

Downtown Toronto has grown and its hospitals are struggling to keep up with growing demand for their services.

1 minute read

November 4, 2016, 5:00 AM PDT

By Casey Brazeal @northandclark


Toronto Construction

ValeStock / Shutterstock

In Toronto, hospitals are serving more people, which is stretching their resources thin. "As downtown Toronto’s population has skyrocketed in the past decade, tens of thousands of patients have streamed out of their new condos and into the hospitals on their collective doorstep," according to a story by Kelly Grant in the Globe and Mail.

This demand is not just coming from a condo boom but also an influx of people coming to the city center to work. Grant reports, "Annual emergency department visits increased by 43 percent at the Hospital for Sick Children, 45 percent at Mount Sinai Hospital and 59 percent at Toronto General Hospital, which is also part of the University Health Network." Hospital officials expressed concern about how this increase in patients could affect all the healthcare services the facilities provide, from surgeries to emergency medicine.

Sunday, October 30, 2016 in Toronto Globe and Mail

Young Professional

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

Get top-rated, practical training for planners

"Planetizen federal action tracker" logo superimposed over black and white image of US Capitol dome.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

September 30, 2026 - Zachary Whalen

The mayor of Baltimore speaks into a microphone in front of a rally for more state transportation funding from Maryland.

‘Going backwards:’ Baltimore mayor, students rally against state's transit funding plan

Maryland's proposed six-year plan provides no funding for Baltimore’s BMORE bus program and reduces its road maintenance funding.

October 2, 2026 - Baltimore Sun

A rendering of the waterfront development, which shows a lit-up stage by the waterfront and people walking about.

Detroit to transform waterfront with $2.2 billion investment

Developers will convert about 18 acres of unused parking lot space into civic spaces.

October 2, 2026 - ABC 7

An aerial view of the new state park, with a forest and lake visible under a sunset.

85-year-old ranch is Texas’ newest state park

The 650 acre ranch is one of the largest parcels of land along Lake Palestine.

15 minutes ago - Houston Chronicle

People walk in front of an MIT building with marble pillars. There are trees in the foreground.

MIT to create AI-powered hub for public transportation companies

Google awarded the project, titled the Public Transit Intelligence Hub, $2.1 million in funding.

1 hour ago - Mass Transit

A metal pipe deposits a line of concrete on top of dozens of other lines, creating a wall.

A 3D concrete printer may solve Virginia’s housing crisis

The printer is able to build concrete walls much faster than humans, and can do so directly at job sites.

2 hours ago - CBS 6 Richmond

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.

Senior Planner

City of Thousand Oaks

Community Development Director

City of Wisconsin Rapids

Professor of Urban Planning

Harvard University Graduate School of Design