Content Map Terms
You can contact HealthLink BC 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to get health information and advice.
Contact us by phone
You can reach us toll-free at 8-1-1.
You will speak with a health service navigator, who can also connect you with a:
- Pharmacist: 7 days a week, 5:00 pm to 9:00 am PST
- Physician Consultation: available upon referral from Registered Nurse, 7 days a week, from 9am to 11pm Pacific Time
- Registered nurse: 7 days a week, 24 hours a day
- Registered dietitian: Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm PST
- Qualified exercise professional: Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm PST
You can also register to get a family doctor or nurse practitioner in British Columbia online or by contacting 8-1-1.
Translation services
Support is available in more than 130 languages.
After dialing 8-1-1, you will be connected with an English-speaking health service navigator. To get service in another language, state the language you need support in (for example, say “Punjabi”). An interpreter who speaks that language will join the call to assist you.
Deaf and hard of hearing
People who are deaf and hard of hearing can contact 8-1-1 using Video Relay Services (VRS), or Teletypewriter (TTY).
Video Relay Services (VRS) sign language interpretation is free for people who are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired. Sign up with VRS and have them call 604-215-5101.
Call 7-1-1 to access the Teletypewriter (TTY) relay service. A TTY call allows a person with a hearing or speech disability to reach a relay operator to facilitate a call with 8-1-1.
Web-enabled phone services
If you want to contact 8-1-1 using a web-enabled telephone service like Skype or Google Talk, or if your service provider doesn’t support calling 8-1-1, please dial 604-215-8110.
Contact us by email
If you have general questions or comments about our services, you can reach us at healthlinkbc@gov.bc.ca. You can also fill out the feedback form.
Please note that we can’t provide personal health information or advice by email.
If you have a concern about the care you or someone you know has received, or feedback about a public health service or organization, find information on who to contact.
VRS for Deaf and Hard of Hearing
The Video Relay Services (VRS) provides sign language interpretation. It is free for registered deaf, hard of hearing or speech-impaired Canadians who use sign language. VRS is available when making telephone calls using Internet and cell-phone technology.
To access VRS, visit Video Relay Services to sign up and give them the number 604-215-5101 to call us.
Teletypewriter (TTY) relay service is also available by dialing 7-1-1.
Alternate Phone Numbers
Deaf and Hard of Hearing
For the deaf and hard of hearing (TTY), call 7-1-1, or for Video Relay Service, visit Video Relay Services and have them call us at 604-215-5101.
Internet Calling Service Providers
You cannot access 8-1-1 by dialing 8-1-1 on web-enabled telephone services like Skype or Google Talk.
Instead please dial:
604-215-8110
8-1-1 Not Available?
If you are unable to reach us by dialing 8-1-1 from your phone, please contact your telephone service provider to arrange access. In a few cases local telephone service providers may not be able to support 8-1-1 dialing.
If this is the case for you, please access our service using our 10-digit number:
604-215-8110.
Office of the Ombudsperson
To contact the Office of the Ombudsperson, which has jurisdiction over hospitals and health authorities in B.C., please call our Ombudsperson, Jay Chalke, at 1-800-567-3247 from anywhere in B.C., or 250-387-5855 if you are calling from the Capital Region.
For more information, please visit www.bcombudsperson.ca/ .
HealthLinkBC File Email Updates
HealthLinkBC Files are easy-to-understand fact sheets that provide B.C.-specific information on more than 200 public health and safety topics. Sign up to receive an email update when new or updated HealthLinkBC Files are posted to our website.