The number of patients waiting to see a specialist in British Columbia has increased by 10 percent over the past year, according to a survey released Tuesday by Doctors of B.C. and Consultant Specialists of B.C. The findings confirm that specialist wait times continue to climb with no signs of easing.
Record number of patients waiting
More than 1.3 million British Columbians are currently waiting to see a specialist, up from an estimated 1.2 million in the 2024 survey. In fields such as cardiology, neurology, and orthopedics, wait times now exceed one year. For urgent cases, the average wait is about four weeks; for semi-urgent cases, it is roughly 10 weeks. Patients with non-urgent referrals face waits of 10 months to over a year, depending on the specialist.
Specialists closing practices
The survey indicates that wait times have reached unprecedented levels. Nearly five percent of the more than 1,000 specialists surveyed have closed their practice to new referrals due to patient backlogs. Additionally, 36 percent have either partially closed their practice to new referrals or are considering doing so within the next year. Doctors warn that the problem may worsen as more practices limit access.
Dr. Robert Carruthers, a neurologist and president of Consultant Specialists of B.C., stated: “Continuing with the status quo is not an option. This concern is critical because as the system gets bogged down with lengthening waitlists, and specialists get to the point where they can’t actually accept any new referrals for non-urgent issues, it means that it’s not going to be clear to family doctors who’s even accepting referrals, where do we send people, and it creates this spiralling inefficiency in the system.”
Proposed solutions
The health groups have put forward several recommendations to address the crisis. These include a wait-list management plan with a centralized database, new tools to support family physicians and their patients earlier, an increase in residency spaces, and support for specialist team-based care in clinics. Another element is a written advice fee, allowing specialists to provide written guidance to family doctors upon receiving a consultation request.
When asked whether the government would act on the recommendation to create a wait-list database—something the groups have advocated for years—Health Minister Josie Osborne did not directly answer. In a statement, she said: “We are working closely with physicians to improve access to specialist care, modernize referral pathways, reduce administrative burden and strengthen the specialist workforce. We have made significant investments to recruit and retain physicians, expand medical training, improve access to diagnostic services and build a stronger health care system for the future.”
