PROGRESS: Strain and innovation at Oceanside Health Centre

PROGRESS: Strain and innovation at Oceanside Health Centre Published 5:35 am Friday, July 17, 2026 View our special Progress section in the July 15 print issue of the PQB News Oceanside Health Centre’s urgent care saw 47,850 patients in the 2025-26 fiscal...

PROGRESS: Strain and innovation at Oceanside Health Centre Published 5:35 am Friday, July 17, 2026 View our special Progress section in the July 15 print issue of the PQB News Oceanside Health Centre’s urgent care saw 47,850 patients in the 2025-26 fiscal year, which works out to an average of 131 patients every day. Visits to the Parksville centre have increased dramatically since 2018-19, when it recorded 28,870 total patient visits, or even the 32,790 received just a few years ago in 2021-22, Island Health data shows.

“This is significant for a site of this size and type,” Island Health told the PQB News. “It is a challenge and a strain point; however, we are continually reviewing processes to improve patient flow and recognize this is an important service for people across the Central Island region.” Along with the rest of the Island, B.C. and the country, OHC is seeing increased demand for all services — especially for urgent care, primary care and home-based care.

Despite serving one of the oldest regions in Canada, demographically-speaking, OHC’s data shows that most patients (60 per cent) are under the age of 65. The centre actually sees a large number of pediatric patients. Common reasons a person goes to OHC include common illnesses (such as an ear infection, skin condition or stomach pain); minor injuries (broken bones or dislocations, stitches, objects in the eye or stabilization before hospital transport); and reproductive and sexual health (pregnancy testing and options, STI testing and treatment and support and care after sexual assault).

Patients who present to urgent care are seen based on how sick they are, not first-come, first-served. “That means that if a person arrives after someone who has already been waiting with a more serious health issue requiring more urgent intervention, they will be seen first,” Island Health told the PQB News. Services at OHC include: urgent care, medical daycare, primary care, mental health and substance use, community health services, geriatric specialty services, diabetes care, heart health, respiratory health, medical imaging, LifeLabs and environmental health.

Along with challenges and strain has come innovation and new models of care, such as Island Health’s Supportive Discharge Program, launched in 2024, which provides up to 72 hours of virtual care for clients with chronic or palliative conditions discharged from the emergency department or acute care. The program has supported more than 1,500 patients at nine hospitals. A new facility for people recovering from brain injuries is set to open in Parksville in October.

Operated by CONNECT Communities, it will provide transitional rehabilitation support tailored to functional needs and recovery goals. The first site opened on the Saanich peninsula in 2025. The Respiratory Therapy in the Community Program has supported more than 1,400 people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and other respiratory conditions, which contributed to a 69 per cent reduction in acute care encounters.

Island Health is seeing a positive trend in primary care access, with the data showing the number of patients without a primary care provider decreased six per cent, compared to a year ago, in people who turned up at OHC. There has also been a 38 per cent decline in additions to the long-term care wait list, which Island Health has attributed to improved Community Health Services and regular reassessments. In Oceanside, Island Health provided 232,750 home support hours and cared for 990 home support clients in 2025/2026.

There were 33,448 Community Health Services Home Care professional services visits to 2,488 patients in 2025/2026. The urgent care centre is for people experiencing serious health issues that are not life-threatening. There are other ways for people to have those needs met and many visits to OHC urgent care could be managed by other areas of the healthcare system, according to Island Health.

More information can be found at islandhealth.ca/find-care. RELATED: Permit granted for Parksville assisted-living facility development RELATED: New urgent primary care clinic opens in Qualicum Beach RELATED: New Qualicum Beach medical clinic to open in September 2026

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