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Alberta patient guide
Private orthopedic surgery options for Alberta patients
Alberta patients can start with Pathway directly, without a referral. The first review can happen virtually from anywhere in the province, with a Calgary location available at SABI. The surgeon, procedure, facility, travel plan, and written quote are confirmed after clinical review.
What private-pay means here
Pathway's private-pay pathway is separate from AHCIP-insured care. It does not purchase a place in the public queue. Patients should confirm which services, professional fees, facility costs, and recovery expenses are privately paid before booking.
Timing
Pathway consultations are typically available within 1–4 business days. If surgery is recommended, scheduling is typically 2–4 weeks after consultation and quote approval, subject to medical clearance and availability.
Start here
How the Alberta pathway works
The process starts with a clear clinical file. Pathway organizes the review and logistics; the specialist determines whether surgery is appropriate.
Meet the appropriate specialist
Begin virtually or through the proposed Alberta pathway. The specialist reviews options, risks, expected recovery, and whether more testing is needed.
Receive the plan and quote
If surgery is recommended, Pathway confirms the intended procedure, proposed facility, timing, inclusions, exclusions, and a written quote before you decide.
Coordinate surgery and recovery
The care team organizes pre-operative requirements, scheduling, travel when needed, discharge planning, and follow-up around the surgeon's instructions.
AHCIP distinction
AHCIP-insured care
Private-pay care
Care elsewhere in Canada
Separate insured care from private payment
The word "private" can describe who operates a facility or who pays for a service. Those are different questions. Confirm the payment pathway for the specific service being proposed.
Medically necessary insured services
Alberta says AHCIP covers eligible residents for medically necessary physician services and insured hospital services. The treating physician determines whether a service is medically necessary and insured.
A separate quote and payment pathway
The patient, employer, insurer, or financing provider pays the privately quoted costs. The quote should identify professional, anesthesia, facility, implant, medication, stay, and follow-up costs.
Coverage may be limited
AHCIP covers insured physician and hospital services elsewhere in Canada under its rules. Alberta advises patients to confirm elective care in advance; private-facility fees and some physician charges remain the patient's responsibility.
Ask before booking: "Which parts of this proposed care are AHCIP-insured, which are privately paid, and what will I owe the physician and facility?" Get the answer and expected charges in writing.
Current public-system context
Hip replacement
Hip replacement
Hip replacement
Knee replacement
Knee replacement
Knee replacement
Alberta hip and knee replacement wait-time data
CIHI's 2026 release reports 2025 provincial results. These figures measure completed public-system cases and do not predict an individual's total wait from referral, clinical priority, or Pathway scheduling.
134-day median
Half of reported Alberta hip replacements were completed within 134 days of the CIHI wait-time start point.
406 days at the 90th percentile
Nine in ten reported Alberta hip replacements were completed within 406 days.
63% met the benchmark
CIHI reports that 63% of Alberta hip replacements met its established benchmark in the 2025 data.
172-day median
Half of reported Alberta knee replacements were completed within 172 days of the CIHI wait-time start point.
467 days at the 90th percentile
Nine in ten reported Alberta knee replacements were completed within 467 days.
52.5% met the benchmark
CIHI reports that 52.5% of Alberta knee replacements met its established benchmark in the 2025 data.
How to use these numbers: they provide provincial context, not a personal forecast. Ask your public-system provider where you are in the current process, and compare any private option using the proposed procedure, surgeon, full quote, facility, and follow-up plan.
Alberta access
Calgary
Province-wide
When travel is appropriate
Consultation, facility, and travel options
SABI
Pathway lists SABI at 1615 10 Ave SW, Suite 202, Calgary. The role of this location in a patient's consultation or procedure pathway is confirmed when the case is reviewed.
Virtual first review
Patients in Edmonton, Red Deer, Lethbridge, northern Alberta, and rural communities can begin remotely after records and imaging are organized.
Other Canadian facilities
Some procedures may involve another province because of surgeon, facility, or scheduling requirements. Travel is planned only after the proposed clinical pathway is clear.
Facility clarity: a Calgary consultation or local first step does not guarantee that surgery happens in Calgary. The surgeon and facility are confirmed after clinical review and before a patient accepts the quote.
Clinical scope
Orthopedic procedures Pathway coordinates
Availability is based on diagnosis, specialist assessment, facility requirements, and medical suitability—not the patient's postal code alone.
Hip and knee
Joint replacement and selected joint-preservation pathways, including hip replacement and knee replacement.
Sports, shoulder, and elbow
Selected ligament, cartilage, tendon, and upper-extremity procedures, including ACL reconstruction and rotator cuff repair.
Spine, foot, ankle, hand, and wrist
Specialist review is available across Pathway's spine, foot and ankle, and hand and wrist networks.
Before deciding
What Alberta patients should confirm in writing
1. Clinical recommendation
What diagnosis is being treated, what procedure is proposed, what alternatives remain, and what outcome is realistic?
2. Complete price
Which surgeon, anesthesia, facility, implant, medication, stay, diagnostic, rehabilitation, and follow-up costs are included or excluded?
3. AHCIP status
Which services are insured, which are private-pay, and has AHCIP confirmed any expected out-of-province reimbursement?
4. Facility and travel
Where will surgery happen, how long should you stay nearby, who should accompany you, and when is the trip home medically appropriate?
5. Recovery close to home
Who will provide physiotherapy, remove sutures or staples if needed, review imaging, and manage routine questions after you return?
6. Urgent support
Who should you call after hours, what symptoms require the emergency department, and how will the surgical team communicate with local providers?
Questions
Alberta patients ask
Do I need a referral?
No referral is required to start with Pathway. Existing imaging, reports, and medical history help the specialist assess the case, and the specialist decides whether surgery is appropriate.
Where will consultation and surgery take place?
You can begin virtually from anywhere in Alberta, and Pathway has a Calgary location at SABI. The surgical facility is confirmed after clinical review and may be in Alberta or another province, depending on the procedure, surgeon, facility, and scheduling.
Will AHCIP reimburse a private-pay operation in another province?
Not automatically. Alberta says coverage for elective out-of-province care may be limited. At a private facility, the patient is responsible for facility fees and for physician charges above the AHCIP-covered amount. Confirm coverage with AHCIP and the treating facility before booking if reimbursement matters to your decision.
What are the latest Alberta hip and knee replacement wait times?
CIHI's 2026 release reports Alberta's 2025 median wait at 134 days for hip replacement and 172 days for knee replacement. The 90th-percentile waits were 406 and 467 days. These public-system results do not predict an individual patient's wait or Pathway scheduling.
Can follow-up and physiotherapy happen close to home?
Often, yes. The surgeon determines the clinical follow-up plan, while Pathway helps organize records, discharge instructions, and communication with local providers. Confirm the local physiotherapy and urgent-care plan before travelling for surgery.
Official references and method: Alberta's AHCIP services in Alberta page explains insured services. Its coverage in Canada page explains elective out-of-province care and private-facility costs. Wait-time figures are Alberta provincial results for 2025 from CIHI's Wait times in Canada, 2026 data release. CIHI notes that its standard reporting period is April through September and is intended to represent the year. Information reviewed July 16, 2026. This is general information, not legal, insurance, or medical advice. See Pathway's medical disclaimer.
Next step
Start your care journey.
Tell Pathway what is limiting you and share any existing records or imaging. The care team will explain the appropriate consultation path, proposed location, and what happens next.