About Canada
Canada is a country in the northern part of North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic to the Pacific and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering 9.98 million square kilometres, making it the world's second-largest country by total area. Canada's southern border with the United States is the world's longest bi-national land border. Its capital is Ottawa, and its three largest metropolitan areas are Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. As a whole, Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its land area being dominated by forest and tundra. Consequently, its population is highly urbanized, with over 80 percent of its inhabitants concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, many near the southern border. Canada's climate varies widely across its vast area, ranging from arctic weather in the north, to hot summers in the southern regions, with four distinct seasons.
Healthcare in Canada
LIke many countries, Canada has both a public and growing private healthcare system. According to the Medical Tourism Index, Canada ranks #1 as a desireable destination for both international (arriving from other countries) and domestic (Canadians travelling within Canada to another province) medical tourism patients. Medical tourism in Canada is still a growing industry with an increasing focus on more private healthcare facilities. While many argue this will hurt public healthcare, there is the equal argument that promoting healthcare choice will allow for improvement of wait-times in the public healthcare system.
With a population of a little over 35 million, Canada is the 11th largest economy by nominal GDP and one of the wealthiest nations in the world. Its healthcare system is public funded but mainly provided by private enterprises, and it does not include coverage of prescription medications. The private healthcare industry also complements anything that is not covered by the public healthcare system. The destination is heavily dependent on the service industry, which employs approximately 75% of its working population, leaving the oil industry, mixed in the remaining 25%. Being one of two destinations in the world that share a border with the United States, there is increased interest from the US and South America to take advantage of its medical tourism industry and its medical facilities.
Healthcare Providers Offering Medical Tourism or Cross-Provincial (Domestic) Tourism
Canada's healthcare facilities often focus on a variety of specialties including but not limited to cosmetic surgery, orthopedics, cardiology, and cancer treatment. Here is a list of types of institutions that have been recognized for their medical services and offer services to international and cross-border medical patients.
- University Health Network (UHN) - Toronto, Ontario: UHN is a group of hospitals and healthcare facilities in Toronto, including Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, and Toronto Rehabilitation Institute. They are known for comprehensive care in a wide range of specialties.
- Hospital for Sick Children - Toronto, Ontario: The International Patient Program (IPP) helps children living outside of Canada who require access to specialized paediatric care not available in the country or region where they reside.
- Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre - Toronto, Ontario: Sunnybrook is a major teaching hospital fully affiliated with the University of Toronto, offering specialized treatments in cancer care, trauma, and burn treatment, among others. It accepts cross-provincial patients from other provinces.
- Cleveland Clinic Canada - Toronto, Ontario: As a branch of the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic, this facility offers a range of services for international patients, focusing on executive health, sports health, and preventive medicine.
- Mount Sinai Hospital - Toronto, Ontario: This hospital is internationally recognized for its excellence in reproductive medicine, cancer care, orthopedics, and other specialties.
- Shouldice Hospital - Thornhill, Ontario: Specializing in hernia repair, Shouldice Hospital is known for its unique surgical techniques and high success rates, attracting patients from all over the world.
- Western Surgery Centre - Winnipeg, Manitoba: This private surgical facility specializes in cosmetic surgery, orthopedics, and other elective procedures, offering services to both local and international patients.
Medical Tourism in Canada
Canada scores high in the main factors that drive medical tourism. The destination was ranked 1st out of 41 for destination environment, because it is a wealthy, democratic and developed nation with a solid government that does not allow corruption. Surprisingly, it also scores high on the medical tourism factor, boosted by its top ranked healthcare costs. This means that Canada’s private healthcare system is extremely competitive when it comes to pricing its services for medical, surgical or dental interventions, taking advantage of the existing infrastructure and its capacity. In the end, this gives them enough power to attract and market its medical tourism industry to the world. Also, the quality of its facilities and its staff expertise gets them ranked 4th, which sends the northern nation to the top of the medical tourism index.
Canada snapshot
| Capital City | Ottawa, Canada |
| Languages | English , French spoken widely by healthcare professionals |
| Form of Government | Constitutional monarchy |
| Time Zone | GMT+7 (Canada has 6 time zones) |
| Country Dialing Code | +1 |
| Currency | Canadian dollar |
| Global Peace Index 2018 | High - 6th place |