RCCbc Engagement & Outreach

At RCCbc, engagement and outreach are more than just activities—they are foundational to how we walk alongside rural, remote, and Indigenous communities. This work is grounded in deep listening, mutual trust, and a belief that the people who live and work in communities are best positioned to lead change. We prioritise connection before content, and empathy before education, because we know that meaningful health system improvement begins with relationships.

In 2024, our Engagement and Outreach work evolved significantly. We concluded the long-standing Rural Site Visits project and expanded into a more relational, multi-pronged strategy. This new approach weaves together Physician and Community Connectors, the Rural Voices Initiative, Rural Immersion Experiences, program and project outreach and provincial and national-level collaboration efforts such as National Rural Health Week. Across these efforts, we aimed not just to show up in communities, but to build lasting, reciprocal relationships that support local leadership, honour Indigenous knowledge, and promote equity across BC’s health system.

This strategy isn’t about parachuting in—it’s about showing up consistently, staying accountable, and co-creating solutions rooted in place, story, and community wisdom.

Clockwise from the top: An RTVS outreach trip to the Hartley Bay nursing station; Alice Muirhead, Director of Engagement, at the Rural Voices Gathering; Drs. Josh Greggain and Anthon Meyer celebrating National Rural Health Week; and Peter Lee, Facilitator at the Rural Voices Gathering.

“We’ve seen time and again that when communities lead the conversation, real change happens.”

Alice Muirhead, Director of Engagement and Outreach, RCCbc

Achievements

Evolving from Site Visits to Relationship-Based Engagement

In 2024, the Rural Site Visits initiative formally concluded after visiting 134 RSA communities and hosting 437 partner meetings since its inception. These visits brought RCCbc teams to places such as New Denver, Nisga’a Valley, Takla Lake, Hornby Island, and Fort St. James, where innovation is often born out of necessity and community strength. The legacy of this work lives on in RCCbc’s broader Engagement and Outreach strategy, which carries forward its commitment to community-led dialogue, Indigenous-informed approaches such as OCAP® and Two-Eyed Seeing, and a focus on building relationship-first frameworks like Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR).

Building on this legacy: Launching the Rural Voices Initiative

The Rural Voices Gathering in November 2024 brought together over 800 participants from more than 200 communities across British Columbia. From Zeballos to Kitimat, Castlegar to Port Hardy, this gathering became a province-wide conversation about community-based solutions.

Building on that momentum, RCCbc launched the Rural Voices Initiative, which supports local, independent, community-led partnership tables. These tables are guided by Appreciative Dialogue and the Partnership Pentagram Plus—fostering collaboration across sectors and allowing each community to lead in its own way.

Expanding Community Connectors

Community Connector learning sessions are an opportunity for RCCbc staff to learn about the rural and remote communities we serve. The learning sessions are a chance to go beyond names on a page on points on a map – or even the health characteristics of a community – to learn where the locals drink coffee, favorite hikes, or notable history.

During the Community Connector learning sessions, staff are encouraged to develop a short presentation on a particular rural or remote community and share with all staff during a Where in BC Wednesday morning huddle. During 2024, we had presentations on Atlin, Cache Creek, Valemount, Penelakut Island and many more.

Nationally, our commitment to outreach expanded: Co-Founding National Rural Health Week

In partnership with the Society of Rural Physicians of Canada, RCCbc co-led the first-ever National Rural Health Week (October 21–25, 2024). With over 140 endorsements—including the CMA, CFPC, IPAC, and CARRN—the campaign amplified rural voices, celebrated rural healthcare providers across Canada, and called for formal federal recognition. In 2025, RhPAP will join as a national co-coordinator.

Visit the National Rural Health Week website

Internally, outreach practices became more integrated: Immersive Learning and Cross-Program Alignment

Engagement and Outreach also supported the launch of Rural Immersion Trips, giving RCCbc staff the opportunity to travel alongside physicians to RSA communities in BC, experiencing rural healthcare delivery first-hand.

Meanwhile, internal coordination efforts—including engagement planning meetings, debriefs, and the use of tools like the Info Hub and Gathering Space—have helped align outreach efforts across programs like RTVS, ROAM/RSON, and RCME.

Explore the numbers

134 RSA communities

visited since the Rural Site Visits initiative began 7 years ago

40+ RCCbc Staff

completed the Community Connector learning series

800+ participants

from 200+ communities joined the Rural Voices Gathering in November, 2024

57% Growth in social media following

across core platforms – LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Threads. RCCbc's eNews also saw an increase in 27.6% email subscribers.

140+ endorsements

submitted for National Rural Health Week, launched in October, 2024

Communities Visited in 2024

RCCbc visited the following communities during the 2024 calendar year:

Atlin, Bella Bella, Boston Bar, Campbell River, Comox, Cranbrook, Creston, Daajing Giids, Fernie, Fort St. James, Fort St. John, Gabriola Island, Golden, Haida Gwaii, Hartley Bay, Hornby Island, Kitimat, Lac Kw’alaams / Port Simpson, Mackenzie, Masset, Port Alberni, Port McNeil, Prince George, Prince Rupert, Quesnel, Sechelt, Smithers, Sparwood, Stellat’en, Sun Peaks, Takla Lake, Terrace, Trail, Vanderhoof, Whistler

Rural Health Stories

During 2024, we produced 22 articles highlighting innovations, milestones and thought-provoking stories around rural healthcare in BC. A popular fixture in RCCbc’s monthly newsletter, these stories provide another channel to engage rural providers, and those with an interest in rural healthcare.

Explore our Rural Health Stories

Making a Difference

“A single conversation can spark a relationship that lasts years. That’s the real work—being present, being consistent, and being invited back.”

Physician Lead, RCCbc

“Amplifying the rural voice is an important step to strengthening the collective effort to ensure better and more equitable care for rural, remote, and Indigenous communities.”

National Rural Health Week Endorser

Plans for the Future

In 2025, RCCbc will continue to grow and deepen our Engagement and Outreach work by:

Supporting new community-led partnership tables through the Rural Voices Initiative
Co-coordinating National Rural Health Week with SRPC and RhPAP, set to take place from October 20 – 24, 2025
Offering quarterly and just-in-time learning sessions for RCCbc’s Community Connectors
Expanding Rural Immersion opportunities for staff and collaborators
Enhancing digital tools and knowledge hubs to support culturally safe and effective outreach

Our commitment remains the same: to walk with communities, support their leadership, and ensure rural and remote voices are heard, respected, and central to BC’s health future. This is what meaningful engagement looks like—ongoing, intentional, and always guided by those closest to the work.