The Fraser Health Authority (FHA) is one of five publicly funded health authorities into which the Canadian province of
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
(BC) is divided. It is governed by the provincial ''Health Authorities Act''.
History
Fraser Health was created in December 2001 as part of a province-wide restructuring of health authorities by the then-new
BC Liberal
The British Columbia Liberal Party, often shortened to the BC Liberals, is a centre-right provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. The party currently forms the Official Opposition. Subsequent to the 2020 British Columbia general ...
government of Premier
Gordon Campbell
Gordon Muir Campbell, (born January 12, 1948) is a retired Canadian diplomat and politician who was the 35th mayor of Vancouver from 1986 to 1993 and the 34th premier of British Columbia from 2001 to 2011.
He was the leader of the British Co ...
. It is the merger of three former health regions: Simon Fraser Health Region (SFHR), South Fraser Health Region, and the Fraser Valley Health Region (FVHR).
SFHR had been formed in 1996 by the merger of the Fraser–Burrard Hospital Society (
Royal Columbian Hospital
Royal Columbian Hospital (RCH) is the oldest hospital in British Columbia and one of the busiest in the Fraser Health Authority. It is located in New Westminster overlooking the Fraser River and is the only hospital in the Lower Mainland that is ...
It has 29,000 employees and serves the region from Boston Bar in the Fraser Canyon down the Fraser River Valley to the Vancouver suburbs of Burnaby and Delta. It is the largest health authority by population in British Columbia (BC). Its 1.9 million residents include approximately 62,000 Indigenous people associated with 32 First Nation bands and 5 Métis chartered communities.
Three rapidly growing communities also included in Fraser Health are Abbotsford, Maple Ridge, and Surrey; all three are served by expanding community-focused acute-care hospitals and related services.
Fraser Health provides health care services for the following communities:
The region's population portion against vaccination occasionally contributes to outbreaks of infectious diseases, such as the 2014 measles outbreak of 320 cases, the most in BC history. In 2021-2022, Fraser Health received a $1,064,107 grant from the
Public Health Agency of Canada
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC; french: Agence de la santé publique du Canada, ASPC) is an agency of the Government of Canada that is responsible for public health, emergency preparedness and response, and infectious and chronic dis ...
's Immunization Partnership Fund to promote
vaccine
A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious or malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verified.
coverage among 2-year-olds in the regions of Surrey and
Chilliwack
Chilliwack ( )( hur, Ts'elxwéyeqw) is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Chilliwack is surrounded by mountains and home to recreational areas such as Cultus Lake and Chilliwack Lake Provincial Parks. There are numerous outdo ...
from vulnerable populations such as
Indigenous
Indigenous may refer to:
*Indigenous peoples
*Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention
*Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band
*Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...
family groups.
Between Aug. 1, 2017, and July 31, 2018, Fraser Health performed over 91,000 surgeries and postponed nearly 2,300 operations on the day of surgery.
Facilities and services
Services provided by Fraser Health include primary health care, community home care, mental health and addictions, acute medical, and surgical services.
Fraser Health has 13 acute-care hospitals including 3 regional hospitals and 9 community hospitals as well as an outpatient care and surgery centre.
Regional hospitals
*
Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre
Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre (''ARHCC'') is a 300-bed Canadian health care facility in the City of Abbotsford, British Columbia that houses the acute care Abbotsford Regional Hospital (ARH) operated by Fraser Health and the regi ...
*
Royal Columbian Hospital
Royal Columbian Hospital (RCH) is the oldest hospital in British Columbia and one of the busiest in the Fraser Health Authority. It is located in New Westminster overlooking the Fraser River and is the only hospital in the Lower Mainland that is ...
*
Surrey Memorial Hospital
Surrey Memorial Hospital (SMH) is a publicly funded hospital owned and operated by Fraser Health in the city of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada adjacent to King George Boulevard.
Overview
Surrey Memorial Hospital began operations in early 1959, ...
Fraser Health has approximately 110 community sites delivering health care services.
The
Royal Columbian Hospital
Royal Columbian Hospital (RCH) is the oldest hospital in British Columbia and one of the busiest in the Fraser Health Authority. It is located in New Westminster overlooking the Fraser River and is the only hospital in the Lower Mainland that is ...
, located in the city of New Westminster, is the oldest hospital in British Columbia and one of Fraser Health's busiest. A major tertiary-care facility known for
trauma
Trauma most often refers to:
* Major trauma, in physical medicine, severe physical injury caused by an external source
* Psychological trauma, a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event
*Traumatic i ...
care,
neurosurgery
Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty concerned with the surgical treatment of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, spinal cord and pe ...
and open-heart surgery, the Royal Columbian Hospital has the only program in British Columbia capable of performing cardiac surgery for expectant women. In September 2018, it was announced that Fraser Health had purchased two private
MRI
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves ...
clinics in Surrey, British Columbia, and Abbotsford, British Columbia.
According to the ''Chilliwack Progress'' in 2019, home-support clients within Fraser Health would have their care directly managed by the health authority. The change is being made because contracts with external service providers for home support services are set to expire in March 2020.
The board of directors functions as Fraser Health's governing body, and oversees the conduct of the organization's business through the executive team, which is responsible for the day-to-day operations. Board members are appointed by the
Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services.
Some governments have separate ministers for mental health.
Coun ...
through the provincial Board Resourcing and Development Office. Prior to the 2001 regionalization, communities elected board representatives.
See also
Other regional health authorities in British Columbia
*
Interior Health
Interior Health is a regional health authority in British Columbia. It is one of the five publicly-funded regional health authorities, serving the southern Interior region of British Columbia.
Facilities
As of 2020 Interior Health operates ...
*
Island Health
Island Health, also known as the Vancouver Island Health Authority, is the publicly funded health care provider in the southwestern portion of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It was established as one of five geographically based heal ...
*
Northern Health
Northern Health is the publicly funded healthcare provider for the northern half of the Canadian province of British Columbia.
Northern Health serves over 300,000 people in an area of 600,000 square kilometres. It was established as one of five g ...
Vancouver Coastal Health
Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) is a regional health authority that provides health services including primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary care, home and community care, mental health services, population and preventive health and addictio ...
Province-wide health authorities in British Columbia
*
First Nations Health Authority
The First Nations Health Authority (FNHA) is a health service delivery organization responsible for administering a variety of health programs and service for First Nations people living in BC.
Overview
The FNHA is part of a First Nations Health ...
*
Provincial Health Services Authority
Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) is a publicly funded health service provider in the province of British Columbia. PHSA is unique in Canada as the only health authority having a province-wide mandate for specialized health services, alth ...