Visions Journal

A reminder that this article from our magazine Visions was published more than 1 year ago. It is here for reference only. Some information in it may no longer be current. It also represents the point of the view of the author only. See the author box at the bottom of the article for more about the contributor.

Rural, Remote and Northern Communities

PDF | EPUB | Vol. 16, No. 1 (2020)

About 1 in 4 British Columbians live in small or rural communities. However, mental health, substance use, and other health services are often located in large urban centres. The process of regionalizing and urbanizing health care—placing services in urban centres to save money—means that the nearest help may be hundreds of kilometres away. Untreated or poorly treated mental health and substance use problems take a toll on individuals, their family and friends, and the entire community. Interwoven into rural, remote, and northern health is trauma and racism—Indigenous people are the largest group living in remote communities. However, rural and remote communities continue to develop new approaches that meet their needs. In this issue of Visions, we explore some of the barriers that rural, remote, and northern British Columbians face as well as the programs and services that bring health and well-being closer to home.