PATIENTS PER DAY
IN VANCOUVER FOR CARE
FROM OUT OF TOWN
Data was collected through respective FOIs; Ministry of Health has been asked to provide overall data.
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Indigenous Services Canada Non-Insured Health Benefits Program (NIHB): Supported 460 eligible clients last year with travel to Vancouver for care. All other Yukon citizens traveling for care are receiving support through insured health benefits.
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Vancouver offers inpatient, outpatient, and tertiary care for British Columbians and those traveling from the Yukon: clinics, emergency services, surgery, transplants, labs, tech services, assessments, follow-ups, and more. ​Vancouver is a regional center within VCH, serving communities: Sea to Sky, Sunshine Coast, Powell River, Bella Bella, and Bella Coola. ​Vancouver is also a hub for provincial medical care, for patients referred to by other health authorities. ​VCH provides 46 per cent of all inpatient specialized care for the entire province and works in partnership with Providence Health Care to deliver care in Vancouver.
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Because data regarding out-patient care is unavailable at this time, there is no way of knowing exactly how many patients receive services in Vancouver every day. We can clearly see it is hundreds. Out-patient visits may clarify accommodation needs for patients, whereas in-patient discharges and the length of those stays may indicate the need for caregiver accommodation. When programs and treatment processes require patients to stay close to the hospital for multiple months, this can also be an unknown in terms of the accommodation demand. Transplants are special in that they indicate a mandatory 3-month relocation to Vancouver. Transplant statistics are also well recorded however this is not the case with other cohorts. ​​​We can look at things like:
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Ronald McDonald House Vancouver has 73 rooms, always full, for BC Children's Hospital (231 beds). 73 of 231 is 32%. 32% of 2346 - which is the combination of beds used above - is 751 beds. Keep in mind Ronald McDonald House is adding another 75-room facility.
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Bella Bella: Between April and August 2024, the FNHA travel assistance spending was $1.2 million just for Bella Bella (in the summer, a population fo 2400 and a hospital trauma room of 7 beds).
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TAP: Just shy of 100,000 patients used a TAP form in 2024 * TAP form is not redeemable for accommodation and is pan-provincial, however it is a data point "glimpse" into how many people are traveling for medical care, via airplanes and ferries.
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JoeAnna's House in Kelowna, BC is a facility just for caregivers accompanying patients traveling for regional care. Their 20 rooms are always full and they are expanding.
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Transplant Cohort
Transplants: 173 transplant patients traveled in 2024 to receive life-saving care; each was required to reside in Vancouver for 2-3 months with a mandatory caregiver. The traveling caregiver requires housing while the patient undergoes surgery and is in the ICU. Pre- and post-transplant appointments also take place in Vancouver including assessments before joining the waitlist. (This assessment involves financial questions regarding your ability to “afford” your transplant relocation.) 2,275 patients residing outside of the Lower Mainland are actively being cared for by the transplant team; each is required to attend a mandatory annual check-up in Vancouver.
​​​​​​​The organ transplant subset is a prime example of the need for healthcare housing. All BC transplants are performed in Vancouver and require 6-week to 3-month residencies. Vancouver is Canada's most expensive city and patients are generally left to their own devices to secure the needed housing. Many cannot. The average out-of-pocket cost for a transplant recipient required to relocate is $18,500.
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For this transplant estimate of 32 rooms needed per day, the total number of transplants in 2024 (481) was first broken down by health authority and those within VCH and Fraser Health Authority, removed. This gave us understanding of those patients traveling for care. Then, we isolated the kidney transplants by percent (63% of 2024 transplants were kidney transplants) which was 108. 108 x 60 days (as kidney transplants require minimum 2-month relocation) = 6,480. The remaining 53 transplants were a mix of lung, heart, liver, and pancreas; 53 x 90 days (as all other transplants require minimum 3-month relocation) = 4,770. Totaling 11,250 nights, divided by 365 = 31.8 or 32 nights per day. ​
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This does not include those traveling for pre or post-transplant care.
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In 2024, there were 90 living kidney donors. Through the Kidney Foundation and the Living Organ Donation Expense Reimbursement Program (LODERP), those traveling to donate can receive funding for hotel stays averaging 5-10 days.
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32 - (7, kidney suites + 2, Heart Transplant Home Society suites + 1, Happy Liver Society suite = 10) = 22 rooms still needed.
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A look at a transplant caregiver’s needs (100% of transplants occur in Vancouver): Caregiver is in Vancouver for at least 3 weeks alone while the transplant patient is in the ICU. At this time, the caregiver is usually staying at a hotel while looking for longer-term housing to host the patient for the mandatory 3-month recovery period required by the transplant program. 37% of transplant recipients are traveling from outside of the Lower Mainland; 481 transplants were performed last year –178 patients and their caregivers were relocated to Vancouver and looking for housing.
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Why are patients traveling?
Patients travel for short-term and long-term stays and a variety of treatment plans and all levels of care.
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JoeAnna's House tracks the following regionally:
Adolescent Psychiatric Unit APU
Cardiac
Cardiac - Surgery
Emergency - Trauma
Followup
Gastroenterology (GI)
Hematology
High Risk Pregnancy
Hospice House
Neurology
Neurology - Surgery
NICU (Premature or Other)
Observation
Oncology
Oncology - Surgery
Palliative
Pediatric
Psychiatric Unit
Rehab
Renal
Respiratory
Stroke
Surgery - General
Surgery - Ortho
Surgery - Plastic
Surgery - Urology
Surgery - Vascular
Testing
Treatment
FNHA tracks the following:
FHNA tracks the following for travel (regional, pan-provincial):
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Anesthesiology
Cardiology
Electrophysiology
Cardiology
Cardiothoracic surgery
Cardiac Surgery
Cardiothoracic surgery
Thoracic Surgery
Cardiothoracic surgery
Dermatology
Dietician
Emergency medicine
Endocrinology
Diabetic Counselling
Endocrinology
Diabetic Testing
Endocrinology
Gastroenterology
Colonoscopy
Gastroenterology
Endoscopy
Gastroenterology
Hepatology
Gastroenterology
General Practitioner
General Surgery
Cardiac Surgery
General Surgery
Thoracic Surgery
General Surgery
Geriatric Medicine
Haematology
Hospital Admission
Immunology
Infectious Disease
Internal Medicine
Medical Genetics
Nephrology
Dialysis
Nephrology
Neurology
Neurosurgery
Obstetrics/Gynecology (OB/GYN)
Midwifery
Obstetrics/Gynaecology (OB/GYN)
Medical Birthing
Obstetrics/Gynaecology (OB/GYN)
Occupational Therapy
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Optician
Ophthalmology
Optometry
Ophthalmology
Oral Surgery
Dental Surgery
Oral Surgery
Orthodontics
Oral Maxillofacial
Orthodontics
Orthopedics
Otolaryngology
Outpatient
Hospital
Outpatient
Primary Care Clinic
Outpatient
Pain Medicine
Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Pediatrics
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Physiotherapy
Plastic Surgery
Podiatry
Radiology
CT Scan
Radiology
Mammogram
Radiology
MRI
Radiology
Nuclear Medicine
Radiology
Ultrasound
Radiology
X-RAY
Radiology
Respirology
Pulmonology
Respirology
Sleep Apnea
Respirology
Sleep Clinic
Demographics, examples
Transplant
+ Living Kidney Organ Donors
1.5-3 month mandatory stay
161 patients from outside LM/yr
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Donors from out of town should expect to stay in Vancouver for about a week after surgery.
All transplants in BC take place in Vancouver. 37% of transplant recipients reside outside of the Lower Mainland and must stay for a period of 1.5-3 months. There are pre- and post-transplant appointments with the Vancouver team that must happen in-person at least once a year - more if patient is unstable.
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Step-by-step guide on BC Transplant website.
Autism
Diagnosis vs. Treatment Plan
"One of the biggest barriers to autism assessment is often location, especially for those that reside in the north of BC, or other remote locations. Having access to temporary housing during the assessment process (which often spans multiple visits) would be very helpful to both families and adults seeking assessment. Many families also need to travel to access service providers, such as an occupational therapist, speech therapist or child psychiatrists to name a few. For example, I am in Victoria, and took my autistic daughter to BC Children's Hospital for an assessment which was an expensive trip, with ferry, hotel, gas, etc."
- Coordinator at AutismBC.
Nervous System Disporders
Neuro;
Spinal Cord Injury
"We do have patients that come from all over BC as well as the Yukon to our clinic. Some of our patients need to stay in town for 6 weeks while we are programming their neurostimulators." - Clinical Resource Nurse
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Chair fittings, driving tests - these are examples of specific enhancements to the life of a person with disabilities that could help them function more fruitfully within their community but are only accessed by making a trip to Vancouver that is paid for out-of-pocket by the individual.
Oncology/L-BMT:
3 month+
Usually, most patients are looking at a 4 week impatient stay and a number of months in Vancouver based on their treatment course. As you know, I work in the leukemia/bon marrow transplant unit which is a special unit that is not available in most hospitals so people get sent here for treatment from all parts of BC and even a few from the Yukon. -L-BMT Social Worker