Provincial Health Services Authority
 PHSA serves the entire province | |
| Formation | 2001 |
|---|---|
| Type | British Columbia Health Authority |
CEO | David Byres |
| Budget | c. $5,028,839,000 in 2023-2024 [1] |
| Staff | c. 22,000 |
| Website | www |
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, although within British Columbia the First Nations Health Authority is also non-regional and highly dispersed. The five other health authorities in the province have regional jurisdiction. Services are provided either directly through PHSA agencies or through funding or collaboration with regional health authorities.
PHSA operates and manages a number of well-recognized specialized programs/services:
- BC Cancer
- BC Centre for Disease Control
- BC Children's Hospital & Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children
- BC Emergency Health Services (with programs BC Ambulance Service and the BC Patient Transfer Network)
- Health Emergency Management BC
- BC Mental Health & Substance Use Services
- BC Renal
- BC Transplant
- BC Women's Hospital & Health Centre
- Cardiac Services BC
The PHSA concentrates on doing three things to meet its responsibilities in health care:
- Provide leadership and management of selected agencies and organizations providing province-wide health care services;
- Ensure health care is delivered by overseeing performance agreements, expectations and funding allocations for selected provincial health care programs and services; and,
- Province-wide coordination of programs, services and support systems required by all health authorities and/or the Ministry of Health.
Health Information Exchange and EMR Integration
[edit]PHSA plays a pivotal role in enhancing British Columbia’s healthcare system through digital transformation and health information exchange. CareConnect, the province’s secure, view-only Electronic Health Record (EHR), is a central tool in this strategy. It offers authorized healthcare professionals access to a patient’s clinical information—including lab results, imaging reports, medication histories, and hospital visits—aggregated from multiple sources across the province. [1]
To strengthen primary and specialty care delivery, CareConnect integrates with various Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems used in the community. Platforms such as Ava EMR, a cloud-based system designed for modern primary care clinics, and Wolf EMR , one of the province’s long-standing primary care solutions, are part of this interoperable ecosystem. [1]These integrations reduce fragmentation, streamline workflows, and allow for more coordinated and timely patient care.
In response to increasing demands on the healthcare system—including provider shortages, rising patient volumes, and the need for rapid access to care—PHSA continues to invest in scalable, technology-driven solutions. Tools like CareConnect, along with advanced EMRs and virtual care platforms, are central to mitigating the pressures of the current healthcare crisis. By leveraging real-time data, automation, and cross-system coordination, PHSA is working to create a more resilient, accessible, and efficient healthcare landscape across British Columbia.
Management and employees
[edit]David Byres has been president and CEO since February 2021, when Benoit Morin stepped down following a review into allegations of misspending.[2] Morin had taken the role in February 2020 after the retirement of his predecessor, Carl Roy, who served as the executive leader of PHSA from January 2014 – February 2020.[3] The organization’s first president and CEO, Lynda Cranston, resigned after a controversial wage increase for 118 senior managers during a province-wide wage freeze for the public health sector.[4]
In October 2013 was recognized with a national top employer honour.[5] In 2015, the Vancouver Sun reported that the five highest-paid public sector employees in British Columbia's health sector were physicians affiliated with the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA). This reflects PHSA's role in delivering province-wide specialized health services, which often involve complex care requiring highly trained medical professionals.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Internet Access & EMR Integration | Provincial Health Services Authority". Retrieved 9 May 2025.
- ^ Gangdev, Srushti (9 February 2021). "B.C. provincial health authority CEO steps down following review into allegations of misspending | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
- ^ "PHSA Executive". PHSA. Archived from the original on 23 March 2014. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
- ^ McElroy, Justin (22 June 2013). "Health authority CEO removed after giving pay hikes to 118 senior managers". Global TV BC. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
- ^ "Canada's Top 100 Employers 2014". Retrieved 24 March 2014.
- ^ Skelton, Chad (12 February 2015). "Public sector salaries: Health authority doctors are top earners". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
