Summary
A new Nanos Research survey commissioned by Santis Health finds that 91% of Canadians want the health system to change. Canadians are frustrated with wait times and lack of access, and are increasingly open to reforms like team-based care, virtual health, AI, and private delivery of publicly-funded services.
Canadians are frustrated with the health care system and they’re not staying quiet about it.
A new national survey released today finds that 91% of Canadians believe it is important for the health system to change now, a view held across every demographic group and every province. That’s not a fringe opinion. That’s a mandate.
The survey, called The Canadian Health Perspective, polled 1,003 Canadians between May 3 and 6, 2026. The results reveal a public that has largely given up on the status quo and is more open to new models of care than health system leaders may realize.
The wait time crisis is defining how Canadians see the system
Ask Canadians what’s broken, and the answer is clear. Long wait times are the top concern, cited by 26% of respondents, more than any other issue, and the number one complaint in Ontario, BC, the Prairies, and Atlantic Canada.
Staffing shortages (11%), a lack of family doctors (8%), and concerns about privatization (7%) round out the top worries. In Quebec, poor access to services edged out wait times as the primary concern.
The emotional toll is significant. 70% of Canadians describe their feelings about the current health care system as “worried” or “frustrated.” Only 14% believe the system is heading in the right direction. Four times as many, 55% think it is actively heading the wrong way.
Canadians are open to new models of care
Despite the frustration, the survey reveals something important: Canadians are not simply calling for more of the same with bigger budgets. They’re open to change, including changes that would have been controversial a decade ago.
Team-based care
69% of Canadians are open to receiving routine care and prescriptions from qualified professionals other than doctors, such as pharmacists, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants. 82% agree that government rules should be updated to allow family doctors to delegate care to other members of their health team and be compensated for it.
Digital health and AI
81% of Canadians are open to expanding virtual care and digital tools, and 67% are open to having health care providers use AI to assist with diagnosis and treatment plans. Notably, 82% say they would like access to a secure “digital health wallet”, a personal record they own and control, allowing them to share their full medical history with any provider instantly.
Private delivery
This is where the numbers are perhaps most striking. About 7 in 10 Canadians believe the best approach to improving health care involves at least some role for private delivery, and 60% are open to private organizations delivering publicly-funded surgeries and diagnostic tests.
What this means
The survey was commissioned by Santis Health, a Canadian health system strategy firm, and conducted by Nanos Research, one of Canada’s leading public opinion research companies.
“Nine in ten Canadians calling for system change is not a nudge, it’s a mandate,” said Patrick Nelson, Managing Partner at Santis Health. “Canadians are ready and willing to change. The system and governments now have a licence, even an obligation to lead it.”
Nik Nanos, founder of Nanos Research, put it plainly: “Although the national conversation includes priorities like geopolitical uncertainty, the economy, and inflation, Canadians are telling us that fixing health care remains squarely top of mind.”
The full report is available at SantisHealth.ca/Canadian-Health-Perspective.
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