Finding the right department. Understanding what the specialist actually said. Remembering the follow up date. Collecting the prescription on the way home. These are the parts of an appointment that go wrong when somebody travels alone, and they are the reason this service exists.
VG Well-Being Transport provides medical appointment transportation across Quebec and, where it is wanted, a trained companion who stays with the client from the moment of pickup until a documented handover at the other end. Our staff transport, escort, supervise and support. They do not perform clinical acts, and their role complements the healthcare team rather than replacing any part of it.
The client decides how much support they want. Some want a quiet drive and nothing more. Others want somebody beside them in the consultation room writing down what was said. Both are the service, and neither is treated as the lesser request.
Every element below is arranged in advance with the client, the family or the referring organisation rather than improvised on the day.
We collect the client from home, their residence or the facility, and get them to the appointment with time to spare rather than rushing them through the door.
Hospitals are confusing on a good day. Our companion finds the right department and handles the desk so the client does not have to.
Where the client wants it and the clinician agrees, the companion goes in, and where authorised writes down what was said.
The journey back is part of the appointment rather than an afterthought bolted onto the end of it.
Waits in Montreal emergency departments routinely run past eight hours. A vulnerable person left alone in that environment is exactly the situation families worry about most, and it is the single most common reason people call us.
Our companion stays for as long as the client needs. Where a wait runs long enough to require it, the service continues through a staff changeover rather than ending when a shift does. The family or referring organisation is kept informed throughout, and our dispatcher is updated in real time.
Extended waiting time is billed at the rate set out in the service agreement, and we tell you before it starts rather than after. There are no surprises on the invoice.
Before a diagnostic appointment, our companion helps make sure the facility's instructions are understood and followed. Fasting requirements, arrival time, documentation to bring, and removing jewellery or metal where applicable. A missed instruction means a wasted trip and a rebooked scan, which for many clients means another month of waiting.
Where sedation is involved, we follow the discharge instructions given by the healthcare team. If medical staff determine that a client should not travel home without additional supervision, we coordinate with the family or care team before the client leaves. Safety comes ahead of convenience every time.
Clients travelling for regular treatment such as dialysis often benefit from a standing arrangement rather than repeated individual bookings, because it holds the slot and keeps the same companion.
Being specific about this protects everybody involved: the client, the care team and our own staff.
Roughly half of our appointment work is booked by a family member arranging support for a parent or an adult child. The other half comes from organisations that need a resident or client moved and accompanied without pulling their own staff off the floor for half a day.
We work with CIUSSS and CISSS contracts, intermediate resources and family type resources, CHSLD and RPA facilities, private families, private insurers, CNESST, SAAQ, community organisations, healthcare providers and corporate clients. Each of those relationships is set up differently and we adapt to how you are funded rather than asking you to fit a single template.
For a family that usually means a straightforward booking and a clear invoice. For an institution it means a service agreement, an agreed rate structure and a reporting format that fits the process you already run. Facilities arranging regular runs will find the detail on our residential care facility and seniors' residences pages.
A medical appointment is difficult enough without a language barrier sitting on top of it. We can reliably provide a French speaking or English speaking companion, and wherever possible we match a client with somebody who speaks their preferred language, because comfort and trust are part of what makes the appointment work at all.
Depending on staff availability we can also provide companions who speak Haitian Creole, Spanish, Arabic and other community languages. Tell us the preference when you book and we will say honestly whether we can meet it for that date.
One important limit. Our staff assist with everyday communication. They are not certified medical interpreters and we do not present them as such. Where an appointment requires professional medical interpretation, such as a consent discussion or a complex diagnosis, we recommend an interpreter provided or approved by the healthcare institution and we will say so rather than let a companion improvise.
Our companions see things. Which clinic, which department, which diagnosis was discussed, which medication changed. Handling that properly is not an administrative detail. It is the entire basis on which a family or a care team lets us into an appointment in the first place.
We maintain a written privacy policy and handle personal information in accordance with Quebec's Law 25. In practice that means personal information is collected and stored securely, access is restricted to operational need, medical and personal information is handled confidentially, every staff member signs a confidentiality agreement, and privacy and information security training is ongoing rather than a one off induction.
Notes taken during an appointment go only to the client, their legal representative or the people the client or organisation has authorised. Nothing is passed to a family member simply because they asked, and nothing is discussed outside the people entitled to hear it.
Tell us what is needed and we confirm before anything is committed.
Date, destination, and the level of support the client needs on the day.
We confirm we can deliver it safely, or say so honestly if we cannot.
Where possible the same companion each time, for continuity.
Documented handover at both ends, with observations passed to authorised contacts.
Appointment accompaniment does not fit a single flat rate, because a fifteen minute blood test and an eight hour emergency department wait are not the same job. Depending on what the service involves, billing may be based on a per trip rate, an hourly rate, distance travelled, waiting time, a monthly or annual service agreement, a customised contract, or a combination of those.
Waiting time is the variable that surprises people, so we are explicit about it. Where an appointment overruns or an emergency department wait extends, the additional time is billed at the rate already agreed, and the family or referring organisation is told while it is happening rather than discovering it on the invoice.
We do not publish prices, because a quote that ignores distance, duration and the level of support needed would be misleading. Tell us what the service involves and we will price it properly.
Clients need to be able to transfer into a standard vehicle seat. Within that we accommodate a great deal.
Where a request falls outside what we can deliver safely, we say so at the point of request and help point you toward a more appropriate provider. We would rather decline early than fail someone mid-journey.
Appointment transport is one part of a wider set of care services. If the need is broader or narrower than an appointment, one of these will fit better.
Door-to-door transportation with a hand at both ends, for clients who are fine once they arrive.
Accompaniment for autistic people, people with intellectual disabilities and clients needing structured support.
Groceries, pharmacy visits, banking, activities and community participation with a companion alongside.
That is the client's choice. Our companion can go in when the client asks and the healthcare professional agrees, or wait in the waiting area if the client prefers. We follow the client's wishes rather than a fixed rule.
Yes. All of our medical transportation services are non-emergency. We are not an ambulance service, we do not provide stretcher transport, and we do not carry clients requiring continuous advanced medical monitoring during the journey. Where a situation calls for that, we say so and help identify the right provider.
Yes. Our companion stays for as long as the client needs, and where a wait runs long enough to require it the service continues through a staff changeover rather than leaving somebody alone. The family or referring organisation is kept informed throughout, and extended waiting is billed at the rate set out in the service agreement.
Yes. When requested and authorised we stop at the client's preferred pharmacy to collect prescribed medication before returning them home. Our staff do not give medical advice, so any question about medication goes to the pharmacist or the healthcare provider.
Our companions help locate the correct department, complete registration and check in, present the RAMQ card, and complete basic administrative forms where authorised. This is often the part of an appointment that causes the most stress, particularly in a large hospital.
Clients who can transfer into a standard vehicle seat can travel with a folding wheelchair, walker, cane or other portable mobility aid, which our staff load and unload. We do not currently operate ramp or lift equipped vehicles, and we do not provide stretcher transport.
Wherever scheduling allows, yes. Continuity matters, because a client who recognises the person collecting them is calmer before the appointment even begins, and a companion who already knows the client's mobility and communication style needs no briefing. We arrange it as a standing preference rather than a request repeated each time.
We can reliably provide French speaking and English speaking companions. Depending on availability we can also provide companions who speak Haitian Creole, Spanish, Arabic and other community languages. Our staff assist with everyday communication rather than acting as certified medical interpreters.
At the rate set out in the service agreement, and we tell you while it is happening rather than afterwards. Where an appointment overruns, the family or referring organisation is notified, our dispatcher adjusts the schedule where possible, and the additional time is billed under terms already agreed.
Only the client, their legal representative, or the people the client or referring organisation has specifically authorised. Information is handled under our written privacy policy in accordance with Quebec's Law 25, and nothing is shared with a family member simply because they asked for it.
Tell us the date, the destination and the support needed, and we will confirm whether we can cover it.
