A push by Daajing Giids Mayor Lisa Pineault to put a dollar figure on the cost of travelling for health care from Haida Gwaii is gaining interest from rural health researchers and policy organizations.
Pineault presented on health-care equality at the Union of B.C. Municipalities Small Talk Forum Sept. 15, arguing that residents of Haida Gwaii and other remote communities face costs and barriers to care that are not experienced equally across the province.
“My constituents and others routinely travel long distances and endure large expenses for medical services and treatments that most British Columbians take access for granted in their local areas,” Pineault said in her presentation.
She said Haida Gwaii residents routinely have to leave the islands for services including surgery, most cancer care and treatment, many diagnostic procedures and some mental-health, eye-care and dental services. Even in a best-case scenario, Pineault said, an off-island appointment can require a travel day on either side, meaning at least three days away from home. Accommodation, childcare and lost wages can add substantially to the cost.
Following the UBCM presentation, Pineault was connected with BC Policy Solutions, the BC Rural Health Network and Dr. Jude Kornelsen, co-director of the Centre for Rural Health Research at the University of British Columbia.
The correspondence included in Daajing Giids council’s Oct. 5 agenda shows interest in examining whether the costs faced by Haida Gwaii residents could be measured separately from broader provincial rural-health figures.
Iglika Ivanova, co-executive director of BC Policy Solutions, wrote that most research on the out-of-pocket costs of accessing health care combines communities into a single rural and remote B.C. category, despite potentially large differences between communities. She suggested a pilot project looking at several communities and specific services such as cancer or maternity care, and said a Vancouver Foundation grant opportunity could potentially support the research.
Kornelsen said Haida Gwaii’s costs would be expected to be higher than the averages reported in broader rural studies and said pooling data can mean remote communities are not accurately represented. She suggested one community could potentially be examined as a case study, noting similar work had previously been done on maternity travel from Bella Bella/Waglisla.
Kornelsen was the lead author of a 2021 study examining what researchers called the “rural tax” of travelling for health care in B.C. The study found respondents spent an average of $2,044 out of pocket, including an average of $856 on transportation and $674 on accommodation. Respondents who lost wages missed an average of 17 workdays and $2,276 in income. The study looked at rural B.C. residents generally and did not provide Haida Gwaii-specific figures.
Pineault said during her UBCM presentation that she wants to see a regional health-care service delivery study that examines service gaps, travel distances and the costs carried by patients.
“A regional Health Care Service Delivery Study could be even more powerful,” Pineault said.
The study has not yet been confirmed or funded. Council’s Oct. 5 agenda asks staff to continue working with BC Policy Solutions on a potential geographic service-gaps pilot study.