Elizabeth Bagshaw Clinic to Close After 35 Years of Delivering Compassionate, Patient-Centred Care
Our closure underscores need for a sustainable, community-based sexual and reproductive health care strategy in British Columbia.
Please note: We remain open and available to provide care during this transition period until June 30, 2025.
After 35 years of providing high-quality abortion services and overall sexual and reproductive health care, the Elizabeth Bagshaw Clinic (EBC) Board has made the difficult decision to close. Changes to the provincial health care system, including Vancouver Coastal Health’s (VCH) plans to shift to a new model for sexual and reproductive health, have created an uncertain future for independent clinics like EBC.
Additional operational barriers, including new accreditation standards and lease constraints, made it impossible for the clinic to continue operating.
“We are deeply grateful to our dedicated staff, physicians, nurses, counsellors, volunteer directors and partners who have worked tirelessly to ensure that people across British Columbia have access to safe, confidential sexual and reproductive health care”, said Board Co-Chair, Robyn Jones-Murrell. “We also want to acknowledge the immense contributions of our donors and members. Your support has allowed us to provide high-quality compassionate care to so many who needed it.”
Our lease is set to expire this summer, and with only one more year of confirmed funding, relocating and investing in a new site did not make sense. This was not a choice the Board wanted to make, but given the structural challenges, it became unavoidable.
Since its founding in 1989, EBC has been a trusted provider of compassionate, patient-centered care in a safe, confidential and nonjudgmental atmosphere. Thousands of individuals have relied on EBC for essential health services each year, demonstrating the critical role independent clinics have played in ensuring access to sexual and reproductive health care across British Columbia. The closure of EBC highlights long standing gaps in access, particularly as half of the clinic’s patients come from outside the Vancouver Coastal Health region.
EBC is working closely with VCH and other providers to ensure a transition for patients to alternative services, including Willow Clinic and Everywoman’s Health Centre. However, the closure will add additional strain to an already overburdened system.
“The time is now for the Government of BC to establish a dedicated provincial strategy for community-based, trauma-informed sexual and reproductive health care,” said Jones-Murrell. “Without a sustainable, coordinated system, access to critical services like abortion, STI testing and contraception will continue to be at risk.”
While the clinic is closing, the EBC Board remains committed to advocating for accessible, secure sexual and reproductive health care for all in British Columbia.
Please direct any media requests to:
elizabethbagshawboard@gmail.com