Updated August 2019
The Canadian healthcare system, unlike most of the U.S. healthcare system, has been publicly funded since 1984. Canadian citizens have access to universal coverage for necessary healthcare services, with patients paying out-of-pocket or purchasing supplemental coverage for prescription medications, and vision and dental care.
Prescription medication is also relatively inexpensive, as the Canadian government negotiates drug prices on a federal level. These and other differences make it difficult for U.S.-based companies to understand exactly how to approach the Canadian healthcare market.
Currently, Definitive Healthcare tracks more than 830 Canadian hospitals, over 125 Canadian health systems, and approximately 7,600 hospital executives across the country's ten provinces. We've compiled a list of the top 10 largest Canadian hospitals by number of staffed beds, including the name of the network each facility belongs to, with the name of each facility’s network.
| Hospital Name | Definitive ID | Staffed Beds | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| McMaster University Medical Centre (ON) | 585921 | 1,212 | Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation |
| Centre Hospitalier de lUniversite Laval (QC) | 775721 | 1,196 | CHU de Quebec - Universite Laval |
| Foothills Medical Centre (AB) | 586129 | 1,079 | Alberta Health Services - Calgary Zone |
| Vancouver General Hospital (BC) | 585714 | 1,003 | Vancouver Coastal Health |
| Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre (NS) | 585853 | 968 | Nova Scotia Health Authority |
| The Ottawa Hospital - Civic Campus (ON) | 840012 | 965 | The Ottawa Hospital System |
| Royal Alexandra Hospital (AB) | 586180 | 877 | Alberta Health Services - Edmonton Zone |
| Hamilton General Hospital (ON) | 839795 | 840 | Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation |
| University of Alberta Hospital (AB) | 586182 | 835 | Alberta Health Services - Edmonton Zone |
| Health Sciences Centre (MB) | 585797 | 777 | Winnipeg Regional Health Authority |
Fig 1 Data from Definitive Healthcare via the Canadian Institute for Health Information and proprietary sources.
This list includes all Canadian hospitals, regardless of facility type. Definitive Healthcare tracks 7 categories of Canadian Hospitals, including cancer treatment centers, chronic care facilities, rehabilitation hospitals, pediatric and psychiatric specialty hospitals, and more. In addition to facility intelligence, Definitive also tracks more than 50 individual technology vendors as well as seven categories of technology implementations, such as clinical systems, electronic health records (EHRs), and revenue cycle management.
Fig 2 Data from Definitive Healthcare via the Canadian Institute for Health Information and proprietary sources. Includes inpatient and ambulatory implementations – for this reason, some hospitals may be counted twice.
As you can see from the list above, Meditech is the leading provider of EHR systems in Canadian hospitals, with Epic coming in second. This is quite a distinction from the U.S. healthcare market. The leading providers of EHR systems in U.S. hospitals are Epic, which holds 28.5 percent of the market share, followed by Cerner, with 23.4 percent of the market share. Meditech holds about 13 percent of the EHR vendor market in the U.S., a far cry from the 40 percent market share it holds in Canada. However, Meditech outperforms Epic in the Canadian market according to Definitive Healthcare data.
Looking for more information on how to leverage intelligence on international hospitals and health systems? With Definitive Healthcare’s comprehensive international platform, you can:
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Alanna Moriarty is a healthcare industry writer and content strategist. As the Content Marketing Manager for Definitive Healthcare, she most enjoys connecting the dots between data and care delivery. ...
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