Care Closer to Home
When we reflect back on all of the work throughout the year, our annual report tells a story of rural health care being strengthened closer to home through many connected efforts led by communities, providers, partners and teams across British Columbia. In a year marked by continued workforce pressure, service challenges and system complexity, we saw people continue to show up for one another with skill, creativity and care. That commitment is at the heart of rural health.
For the Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc), care closer to home is both a practical goal and a relationship-based way of working. It can be seen in the growth of the Rural Obstetrical and Maternity Sustainability Program (ROAM) and the rural maternity teams working to sustain local birth services; in Real-Time Virtual Support (RTVS) and rural specialist networks that help providers access support when and where they need it; in education, mentorship and point-of-care learning opportunities that build local confidence and capacity; and in the Rural Voices Initiative, research, storytelling and partnership tables that help rural, remote, First Nations and Métis perspectives shape decisions that affect their care.
The stories in this report remind us that rural health care is human work. Behind every program are people navigating distance, uncertainty, limited resources and deep responsibility to their communities. We celebrate the successes shared throughout this report and recognize the leadership, creativity and care that rural communities and providers bring to real system pressures. We lift our hands up to the rural providers, community members, patient partners, Indigenous partners, health system colleagues, researchers, educators, staff and funders who continue to bring honesty, generosity and leadership to this shared work.
Looking ahead, RCCbc will continue to support the relationships, evidence, learning and practical infrastructure that help rural care stay strong. We will keep working with partners to advance rural maternity care, hybrid and virtual supports, specialist access, culturally safe care, transport equity, community-led priorities and rural-informed policy and planning. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this year’s work. We are honoured to continue supporting efforts that help rural people receive care closer to home, in ways that are safe, connected and grounded in community.
With gratitude,
Leslie Carty
Executive Director, Operations
Dr. Ray Markham
Executive Director, Medicine
Our Work
The Rural Coordination Centre of BC is a rural physician-led network that improves the health of people and communities across rural British Columbia. With our numerous partners, we identify and address rural health gaps and overlaps. These summaries from our projects and initiatives highlight the many achievements of our health leads, staff, and partners during 2025.
Cultivate Relationships and Networks
We connect people who are passionate about, or play a role in, enhancing rural health equity in British Columbia—from rural citizens and physicians to municipal and Indigenous leaders to provincial policymakers.
Facilitate Rural Health Discussion
We co-create safe spaces for network partners to engage in frank discussion about rural health challenges, explore common solutions to improve rural health, and align our work as partners.
Coordinate Rural Health Projects
We coordinate innovative projects that expand our network and enhance the ability for rural physicians and other health care providers to deliver timely, safe, and effective care to rural patients in British Columbia.
Create Learning Opportunities for Rural Health Care Practitioners
We co-develop continuing medical education, continuing professional development, and mentorship opportunities in collaboration with rural family physicians to enhance rural health providers’ skills, scope, and resilience at all stages of their careers.
Advocate for a Healthy Rural British Columbia
We use our personal and shared experiences, as well as rural health research evidence, to effect changes to provincial policies that improve the health of rural British Columbians.
Stimulate Rural Health Research
We provide grants and offer other support to rural physicians and medical students to carry out culturally safe and rurally relevant research that informs policy and improves healthcare practice and delivery.
Develop Health Care Leaders
We support and develop people in becoming health care leaders in their chosen fields of interest and expertise—whether they work in administrative, medical, research, advocacy, or other positions—so their unique perspectives, skills, and knowledge can be used to the fullest potential to improve rural health.
Engagement and Outreach
Engagement and Outreach help RCCbc listen, connect and work alongside rural, remote, First Nations and Métis communities. In 2025, this work supported community-led conversations through Rural Voices Initiative, helped rural priorities move across programs and partnerships, and worked closely with Communications to share stories, events, learning and opportunities across RCCbc channels. Often happening in the spaces between programs, this work helps connect communities, providers, partners and decision-makers across British Columbia.
Truth and Reconciliation
In 2025 our network has worked collaboratively with Indigenous communities, Elders, Knowledge Holders and consultants to address some of the calls to action contained within the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada report. With team members across the province, we are well positioned to make a difference by building capacity in rural, remote and Indigenous communities in order to close health equity gaps. While we recognize that we still have much work to do, this report highlights how RCCbc has sought to address truth and reconciliation in healthcare this past year.
Gratitudes
The Rural Coordination Centre of BC continues to be grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with a diverse range of partners—health administrators, healthcare providers, professionals, communities, policymakers, non-profit and industry leaders, as well as academic educators and researchers—from across British Columbia in our joint efforts to enhance the health of rural people and communities. These partners are integral to the Partnership Pentagram Plus model. Our initiatives remain generously supported by the Joint Standing Committee on Rural Issues, which provides advice to the BC government and Doctors of BC on matters related to rural medical practice, and by Michael Smith Health Research BC.
Collaborators
