Updates

​​Across the country, doctors spend almost 20 million hours a year on administrative tasks. Thanks to the Healthcare Unburdened Grant Program and implementation support from Healthcare Excellence Canada, healthcare teams are actioning practical ways to help give that time back – supporting professional well-being and improved patient care.​

High-performing health systems share six key levers focused on the lived experiences of patients and those delivering care – they can be replicated across the country

Insights from HEC’s Leaders' Forum

What does it take to shape a future where everyone in Canada has safe and high-quality care? There’s no single answer – but there is a way. For five years, Healthcare Excellence Canada (HEC) and our partners have been finding it, together. As we celebrate a half-decade of progress and growing momentum towards safer, higher-quality care, we invite you to join us in moving Care Forward.

Teams participating in the Right Care Challenge, which focuses on reducing avoidable emergency department visits and improving access to primary and community care, have demonstrated how everyday interactions contribute to safer care.

On March 24, 2026, Minister of Health, Marjorie Michel, announced a $3M investment to strengthen primary care — in partnership with CIHR and HEC.

Truth and reconciliation is not a checkbox – it is an ongoing journey of learning, reflection and relationship building. At HEC, we continue to be guided by the leadership of First Nations, Inuit and Métis partners and advisors in this work.

Everyone plays a role in patient safety—leaders, providers, policymakers, patients, and caregivers. Healthcare Excellence Canada recognizes the vital work happening nationwide to ensure safer care.

A friend recently waited more than five hours in the hospital emergency department – not because she needed emergency care, but because it was simply the only way she could get a time-sensitive prescription renewed.She isn’t alone.