You won’t have to leave town for emergencies, surgery, having a baby, or seeing a specialist. Prince Rupert Regional Hospital is the anchor of healthcare on the North Coast, serving Prince Rupert, Port Edward, and the surrounding coastal communities.
It’s a 30-bed regional hospital currently undergoing $80 million in upgrades, with an emergency department recently renewed through a $16.5-million investment. Services on site include emergency care, acute care, general and orthopedic surgery, internal medicine, maternity, cardiac diagnostics, medical imaging (CT, ultrasound, X-ray, mammography, echo), lab services, adult psychiatric inpatient care, and a community cancer clinic.
Specialists don’t always live here permanently, but they do visit regularly. Pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, cardiology, radiology, and psychiatry all run scheduled clinics in town, so you won’t always have to travel for a specialist appointment.
Prince Rupert Regional Hospital
For services not available locally, patients are referred to Ksyen Regional Hospital in Terrace, about 90 minutes east. It’s the regional hub for northwest B.C., and it opened a brand-new facility in November 2024. We’re talking 82 beds, four operating rooms, MRI, and full trauma and specialist care.
This is how healthcare works in most northern communities. Having a strong regional centre nearby is the model, not a workaround. There’s also financial support to get there: the B.C. Travel Assistance Program helps offset travel costs for non-emergency specialist appointments (because gas money should not be the deciding factor in a medical decision).
Ksyen Regional Hospital, Terrace
B.C. Travel Assistance Program (TAP)
If you move here without a family doctor, you’ll likely wait a while before getting matched with one. The Prince Rupert and Coast Ts’msyen Primary Care Network is actively recruiting new physicians, and new doctors are expected to join community practices over the coming months and years, which means the waitlist does move.
Register through B.C.’s Health Connect Registry and you’ll be contacted when a doctor or nurse practitioner becomes available. It’s not instant, but it’s a real system with real momentum behind it.
While you wait, you’re not on your own. HealthLink BC connects you to registered nurses, dietitians, and pharmacists 24/7, and Prince Rupert Community Health covers public health nursing, immunizations, prenatal care, and children’s dental health.
Health Connect Registry — Register for a Family Doctor
Prince Rupert Community Health
HealthLink BC — 24/7 Nurses, Dietitians & Pharmacists
Options for Sexual Health Clinic
Rupert has dental clinics and two optometry practices, so you can get a tooth fixed and renew your glasses prescription without leaving town. Most dental clinics handle direct insurance billing and offer emergency appointments when you need one.
Greenwoods Dental & Surgical Centre
Gateway Dental Clinic
Prince Rupert Optometry
Kaien Island Optometry
Children’s Dental Health — Northern Health
If you’re moving to Rupert with older family members, or planning to stay here as you age, long-term care, assisted living, and home support programs are available through Northern Health.
Acropolis Manor — Long-Term Care
Summit Residence — Assisted Living
Home & Community Care — Northern Health
Mental health services in Rupert are more accessible than you might expect. Northern Health runs a community mental health and substance use team locally, offering assessment, counselling, psychiatric support, harm reduction, and outreach for people navigating complex challenges. You can self-refer. You don’t need a doctor’s referral to reach out.
Prince Rupert Regional Hospital also has an adult psychiatric inpatient unit for people who need that level of care. And if you’re in crisis, 9-8-8 (the national Suicide Crisis Helpline) is available 24/7 by call or text.
Northern Health — Mental Health & Substance Use
BC Schizophrenia Society — Prince Rupert
Suicide & Crisis Helpline — 24/7
Rupert sits on the traditional and unceded territory of the Ts’msyen Sm’algya̱x-Speaking Peoples. Indigenous community organizations are a central part of how health and wellbeing are supported here, not a footnote.
Kxeen Community Services (formerly Prince Rupert Aboriginal Community Services Society) has been serving Indigenous residents since 1999. They run programs that fill real gaps: medical transportation funding to help people get to appointments, client advocacy, a licensed preschool (Aboriginal Head Start) for children ages 3 to 5, and homelessness prevention support. If you or a family member is Indigenous and navigating the health system, KCSS is one of the first calls to make.
Kxeen Community Services Society (KCSS) (Formerly Prince Rupert Aboriginal Community Services Society)
Aboriginal Head Start Program
First Nations Health Authority
Northern Health — Indigenous Health
Beyond the medical system, Rupert has a real network of community support. Whether you’re going through a tough stretch financially, navigating food insecurity, or just new to town and not sure where to start, these organizations show up.
Not sure which one you need? Dial 2-1-1. BC211 is free, confidential, and available 24/7, and they’ll connect you to the right service for your situation.
The Salvation Army — Food Bank & Community Programs
BC211 — Social Services Navigator
Legal Aid BC
Service BC — Provincial Government Services
For physicians: physicianjobs.northernhealth.ca. Questions? Email the physician recruitment team directly at physicians@northernhealth.ca.
For all other healthcare roles: jobs.northernhealth.ca.
