Some patients admitted through Markham Stouffville Hospital’s emergency department can now wait for an inpatient bed in a separate, quieter unit, a change Oak Valley Health says is freeing emergency spaces for incoming patients.
The temporary Transitional Bed Unit opened as part of the hospital’s response to a sharp, early increase in influenza and respiratory illness in January 2026, according to Oak Valley Health’s 2025–2026 Year in Review.
The hospital reports more than 100,000 emergency department visits annually, compared with the 70,000 visits the department was designed to accommodate. It often had more than 25 admitted patients waiting there at once, limiting space for new arrivals.
Patients awaiting inpatient beds sometimes remained in the emergency department for more than a day, according to the health organization. The new unit provides another place for eligible patients to receive care during that wait.
“The busiest time in the ED is when we’re waiting for inpatient discharges, which creates a backlog,” Brandon Douglas, vice-president of clinical operations and chief nursing executive, said in the year-in-review story.
A separate space for short stays
The unit is located within the Alongside Midwifery Unit and shares space with the Midwifery Program. It is intended for short-stay patients who have been assessed and admitted but do not require intensive acute care.
Only emergency department patients who meet specific criteria can transfer there because of the other patients receiving care in that area. The account does not detail those criteria.
Previously, patients could be placed in the hospital’s transfer queue while continuing to receive care in the emergency department until an inpatient bed became available.
Transfers to the temporary unit begin early in the morning. Emergency department staff, Access and Flow staff and Resource Team nurses coordinate the moves, according to the hospital.
Julia Johnson, clinical leader in the emergency department, said in the year-in-review story that the change has reduced reliance on hallway spaces.
“Since the TBU opened, we’ve been able to decrease the use of hallway spots and focus on emergency care.”
The account also describes William “Bill” Haley’s experience during two hospital visits. His son, Jason, said his father appeared less anxious after moving from the emergency department to the transitional unit.
The hospital says the unit offers patients a bed and a quieter setting, rather than an extended stay on a stretcher amid emergency department noise and bright lighting.
The current arrangement remains temporary. Under the hospital’s master plan, the Alongside Midwifery Unit is expected to change over time, with some rooms potentially converted to medicine capacity as community needs grow.
