Treating the right patient at the right time: Access to echocardiography in Canada.

The Canadian Cardiovascular Society is the national professional society for cardiovascular specialists and researchers in Canada. In the spring of 2004, the Canadian Cardiovascular Society Council formed the Access to Care Working Group ('Working Group') to use the best science and information available to establish reasonable triage categories and safe wait times for access to common cardiovascular procedures. The Working Group decided to publish a series of commentaries to initiate a structured national discussion on this important issue, and the present commentary proposes recommended wait times for access to echocardiography. 'Emergent' echocardiograms should be performed within 24 h, 'urgent' within seven days and 'scheduled' (elective) within 30 days. A framework for a solution-oriented approach to improve access is presented.