Oceanside Long Term Care "From Shortfall to Crisis"

On January 13 2026, Dan Levitt, BC's Seniors Advocate made yet another trip to Qualicum Beach to speak to the Oceanside Caregivers group, addressing his shared concerns about the lack of support for seniors in need of long term care (LTC). Currently many residents are waiting for a LTC bed to come available and in the interim some are simply fending for themselves in precarious situations. Some are being cared for by loved ones who are simply at the point of exhaustion with no opportunities for respite. Stephanie Higginson BC MLA, also attended the session and confirmed that there are only 3 respite beds in Parksville allocated to all of Oceanside. (Respite beds provide temporary short term lodging in a care facility for someone needing care, offering a much needed few days break for their regular family caregiver to rest or handle other needs.)

The province has completed a recent review and admits that Oceanside needs more senior supports. Ms. Higginson confirmed the new Lantzville LTC facility that was initially announced in Oct 2023, and has now been redesigned to reduce construction costs which were originally estimated at $1.2 million per bed. This project is currently in "review." Expected date of approval and estimated construction period are still unknown but the facility is unlikely to be open before 2028-2029 assuming the project passes remaining hurdles and construction is started next year.

How does this effect Qualicum Beach?

To understand the impact it is important to look at the actual unique demographics of our town along with the impacts of delaying the appropriate level of care.

Delays in providing long term care result in increased ambulance calls, more emergency hospital visits and hospital beds being used as temporary parking spots. Delay effects everyone not just the senior themselves.

Based on most recent Stats Canada Data (2021)

Total population 9303.

Age Group  15 - 64	Age Group 65-69	Age group 70-79	Age Group 80-89	Age group 90+
3430	1210	2435	1265	335

Given that the Stats Canada info is now 5 years out of date many of the residents will have moved from one group to another and some in the 90+ years old grouping will have passed on. The average age of long term care resident in BC is 83 years old, which makes population in the 70 to 90+ years old groups above relative to this discussion.

Actual Long Term Care Beds in Qualicum Beach (As at Jan2026)

	Private Pay	Government Funded
The Gardens wait time 12 to 18 months	13	87
The Manor wait time 6 to 9 months	15	45
Eagle Park wait time 9 to12 months	0	75 (includes 20 shared rooms)
Total	28	207	235

Placement in to government funded beds is managed by Island Health and allocated based on "urgency of need". Island health does not release the number of residents on the waitlist for LTC, but I think it is safe to say there are a lot of people waiting and with only 235 beds, some will never receive appropriate long term care.

Is the province doing enough?

Not withstanding that it is often 8 to 10 years from announcement to operational opening day, the province is still only planning 5 years forward. Based on the seniors advocate reports long term care shortages will become even more extreme as more of the baby boomer population reaches end of life adding even more demand for long term care services. The reality is that both senior levels of government are facing the highest levels of deficit in recorded history, resulting in limited capability even if there is a will to do more.

What can and should the town do about the situation?

I was pleased to see the Mayor and 3 councilors attend Dan Levitt's session. During the Q and A period there was a brief discussion about a small single family home conversion project in Chase BC. ( Chase BC has a population of approximately 2500 and only 25 people 90 and older.) However based on the discussion about the small facility in Chase BC it is appears that some on our council may still not understand the magnitude of the problem and or the specific demographics of our town.

It is not our councils role to build and operate long term care facilities. Despite the senior governments limitations, it remains their responsibility to solve the problem.

In my opinion the the town should do two things. Firstly they should continue to lobby the senior governments to take advantage of the land sold to Island Health for the Eagle Park facility. There is sufficient land at that site and plans were drawn at that time for a future expansion. Secondly, the town should identify and ensure sufficient land within the town is OCP compliant and preferably pre-zoned to accommodate sufficient long term care facilities to meet the needs of our residents. Failure to do so will continue to see NIMBYISM stifle and delay any progress to solve the problem with help from the private sector. Where exactly is land within our town that is zoned currently to permit more LTC facilities? I continue to ask and am still waiting for an answer to this simple and very specific question from town staff. We need Councils' leadership and will to see this actioned.

Marie Noel

January 15th 2026

We welcome your comments and feedback.

You can email us at QualicumBeachInsights@gmail.com

More info

Dan Levitt Seniors Advocate report

Island Health LTC facilities (Jan 2026) wait times