BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) provides patient transfer services across British Columbia.
BCEHS transfers patients
- To a hospital or health facility that offers a higher level of care within BC
- Back to their home community hospital (repatriation), from within or outside BC
When you're ready to go back to your home community, your health care team and BCEHS will decide if you need paramedic care during transport.
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If you need paramedic care: BCEHS and your care team will arrange transport through BC Ambulance Service
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If you don't need an ambulance: Your care team may arrange another transport service
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If you're discharged and can travel on your own: You are responsible for getting home
Family members may not be able to travel with you.
BCEHS understands how important family support is, but ambulances have limited space and weight capacity. Paramedics will decide if a family member can travel with you when they arrive.
Because of this, BCEHS recommends that family members make their own travel plans.
If a family member is allowed to travel with you, they may need to show photo identification.
- If you have BC Medical Services Plan (MSP) coverage:
$0*
- With MSP coverage:
$80 flat fee (air or ground)*
If you do not have a valid BC Care Card (for example, visitors or non-residents), fees are:
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$848 flat fee (ground)*
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$4,394 per hour (helicopter)*
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$11 per mile (airplane)*
*Prices may change.
For more details, visit the
Billing page.
You may share an ambulance with another patient during your transfer. BCEHS does this to use ambulance resources efficiently due to high demand.
Your health care team and BCEHS will decide whether you travel by air or ground ambulance. They consider:
- Distance
- Your medical needs
- Available resources
If you do not need an ambulance, your health care team may arrange another option based on your needs, such as:
- Commercial airlines
- Wheelchair-accessible taxis
- Family members
- Private medical transport service
- HandyDART
About Patient Transfer Services
Two BCEHS teams work together to manage transfers:
- Patient Transfer Network (PTN)
- Patient Transport Coordination Centre (PTCC)
Together, they form Patient Transfer Services (PTS).
PTS brings together a team of Interfacility Emergency Medical Call Takers, Clinical Transport Advisors, and Interfacility Emergency Medical Dispatchers. Together, they help coordinate patient transfers between healthcare facilities across British Columbia.
Every transfer is based on the patient's medical needs and how urgently they need care. The goal is to get each patient to the right facility, at the right time, using the right resources. BCEHS plays an important role in helping physicians across the province arrange the care their patients need.
The PTN:
- Works with sending and receiving hospitals to assess patient needs
- Coordinates transfers
- Reviews and prioritizes all requests (triage)
- Connects care teams through a medical teleconference
Hospitals must go through this process to arrange a transfer. It helps ensure patients get to the right place as quickly as possible.
Patient Transfer Network (PTN) serves as British Columbia’s provincial coordination center for interfacility patient transfers. PTN also coordinates transfers from the Yukon, Alberta, and international locations when BC residents require ongoing hospital care after returning home. PTN also facilitates physician-to-specialist consultation calls, supporting timely access to expert medical advice.
After a transfer is approved, the PTCC:
- Manages logistics
- Dispatches ambulance resources
- Coordinates air and ground transport
Most transfers happen within BC, but some occur across Canada or internationally.
BCEHS works closely with BC's health authorities to safely transfer patients.
- BCEHS helps identify the right hospital for the patient
- It connects the sending and receiving clinical teams
- The receiving hospital decides if it can provide the needed care
- When the hospital confirms space and readiness (a bed is available) the transfer goes ahead
- The sending doctor or hospital shares the patient's condition and care needs with BCEHS
- Patient Transfer Services contacts the appropriate regional health authority team
- BCEHS sets up a call between the sending and receiving doctors
- The receiving hospital confirms it can meet the patient's needs and has a bed available
- Once confirmed, BCEHS completes the transfer
When a patient requires care that is not available at their current hospital or needs to return to a BC hospital for ongoing care, PTN coordinates the transfer.
PTN connects the patient’s attending physician with a specialist at a suitable receiving facility, following health authority policies and provincial guidelines. The specialist helps decide whether the patient needs transfer, how urgently, and when the patient needs to receive care. Throughout the process, PTN helps keep healthcare teams informed and supports communication between facilities.
To check on a patient or their transfer status, please call the hospital's main phone line or the nursing station where the patient is currently staying/admitted.
To protect patient privacy under BC law (FIPPA), medical information can only be shared with an authorized family member or legal decision maker.
When you call, have the following ready:
- Patient's full legal name
- Patient's date of birth
