No. Selecting appropriate rural sites and providing the necessary faculty development takes time. We have more than enough rural rotations for all the residents in our Program. Some locations have longstanding relationships to certain of our sites. Your Site administrator will let you know about these.
You will be reimbursed according to the PGME policy for Mandatory Distributed Rotation.
No, if you do not have a car, you should select a site where the office, accommodation and hospital are in walking distance, or transport is provided. Please check with the Rural Education Manager if you are unsure which sites do not require a car.
Some sites can accommodate families but not all. PGME Mandated Housing has a priority to provide accommodation for the resident.
This is not recommended. If you decide to take your pet, please ensure the accommodation permits animals. Sites with PGME Mandated Housing do not permit pets.
This information is on ENTRADA under Program Resources > Rural Rotations. Your Site Coordinator will also have information about rural communities that have an affiliation with your site.
If you wish to complete additional rural electives, you may be able to do so if the schedule permits. Please contact the Rural Education Manager if you wish to arrange this. REAP may be able to cover up to $1400 for travel and accommodation for that month for RSA communities.
Residents have protected time off from their clinical work to accommodate travel to a rural rotation or when returning from a rural rotation to their home site or subsequent placement.
The amount of protected time off, per one-way trip, is as follows:
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- Travel under three hours: no time off
- Travel between three-six hours: half-day (4hrs) off
- Travel over six hours: full day off
Travel time can be supported through google maps (if necessary).
If accommodation is required during the travel, please email PGME to request pre-approval of the cost.
Don’t contact the community without first speaking with your Site Coordinator or Rural Education Manager to confirm your rotation.
In exceptional cases, where being away from home would be a hardship to the resident and their family, rural rotations may be arranged in communities that you can commute to from your home site. Speak to your Site Director regarding this. A Close Proximity Request will need to be submitted.
You need to submit your request to the residency office for approval.
You are not expected to attend academic half day while on your rural rotation, even if you can commute. You will not be reimbursed if you choose to attend these sessions. See the Rural Academic Log tab for information on continuing academic activities while away from your site.
Residents will be reimbursed for economy airfare or mileage to a maximum of $700 to and from (one round trip) a mandatory rotation at a distributed site within the province of British Columbia. One return trip/mid-rotation to the home site at the end of each four-week block or one spousal trip will be funded during the rural rotation to a maximum of $700 within BC only.
Your travel will be covered for attending Residents Conference, Residents Retreat and Scholarship Day. However, we will not pay for travel for CCFP and LMCC exams, or Year End parties.
Residents must have pre-approval by the PGME office if they want to stay elsewhere. Please email pgme.mandatedhousing@ubc.ca for approval.
Please refer to the PGME website for the Policies and Procedures on Resident reimbursement requirements related to travel on mandatory distributed rotations. https://postgrad.med.ubc.ca/current-trainees/policies-procedures/
Accommodation exceeding $1400/month must be pre-approved by the Postgraduate Dean’s Office with a minimum of eight weeks notice. The monthly maximum reimbursement rate $1,400/month will be treated as equivalent to a single rotation (28 days), and pro-rated for any duration less than 26 days or greater than 31. Please send requests to - pgme.mandatedhousing@ubc.ca.
Mandated Housing Update Applicable to the 2023-2024 Academic Year
- Residents are required to request pre-approval for mandated distributed rotation housing expenses above $1,400/block 8 weeks in advance of the rotation start date.
- A maximum amount of $3,000/block for mandated distributed rotation housing expenses will be considered for pre-approval requests. Pre-approvals will continue to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and will be approved based on the lowest cost available housing for the specified rotation dates and location that meet PGME requirements.
For general frequently asked questions about residency, please visit the Resident FAQ page.