Areas we serve: Alberta-based, with global reach
Portage's crews are based in Calgary and Edmonton. We travel with people throughout Alberta, across Canada, to and from the United States and Mexico, and countries around the world.
Last updated October 11, 2026
Portage's Medical Escorts and Travel Companions are based in Calgary and Edmonton, and we can get to anywhere the traveller is. The crew travels to meet them, by commercial flight or by road, and brings them to their destination: within Alberta, elsewhere in Canada, or in another country.
Alberta: where our crews are based
Portage is based in Alberta, Canada, with crews in both of the province's major cities. Being here means short lines of communication with Alberta's hospitals, care homes, and home care teams, the option of an in-person assessment before a flight when it's warranted, and two major airports on the doorstep: Calgary International Airport (YYC) is Canada's fourth-busiest airport and Edmonton International Airport (YEG) its fifth, with direct flights across the country and non-stop international routes between them.
British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba
Journeys between Alberta and its neighbouring provinces are a regular part of our work: a patient transferring between hospitals, a parent relocating to be closer to family, or a visitor going home after treatment in Alberta. Many of these trips go by road, with a Medical Escort or Travel Companion in the vehicle, whether that's Calgary to Kelowna, Edmonton to Saskatoon, or as far as Vancouver or Winnipeg.
Ground travel also serves patients who can't fly. A patient with a mental health condition who isn't suited to a commercial cabin can often make the trip by road with a Medical Escort, at a fraction of the cost of an air ambulance. We also move formal patients between facilities by ground, working with the sending facility on the documentation the transfer requires.
Across Canada
For Ontario, Quebec, Atlantic Canada, and the North, a Medical Escort or Travel Companion flies out from Alberta to meet the traveller, or travels with them from Alberta to their destination. One recent journey took a patient from Toronto to a new long-term care home in Halifax, with a Medical Escort for the medications he needed and his daughter travelling with them.
Read more information on who we help:
If you are a healthcare professional, insurance or assistance company, read how we can help repatriate your patients back home.
United States
Canadians who spend the winter in the southern states sometimes need to come home after a hospital stay, and some need support to get there in the fall. Non-stop flights from Calgary and Edmonton reach Phoenix, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Denver, and other US cities, and we arrange the airline's medical clearance, the release of US hospital records, oxygen where needed, and ground transport at both ends.
Common locations served:
Arizona
Florida
California
Mexico
Journeys between Canada and Mexico most often start in the resort cities where Canadians winter, such as Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlán, Cancún, and Los Cabos, many of which have direct winter flights to Calgary and Edmonton. A Medical Escort or Travel Companion flies down to meet the traveller, and we handle the airline's clearance and the hospital arrangements at both ends.
Read more on medical repatriations from Mexico.
Worldwide
Portage's founder has spent more than 20 years repatriating patients to and from Canada, and that experience is what the service is built on. We repatriate patients and support travel between Canada and Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America, on commercial flights with a Medical Escort or Travel Companion. The Case Coordinator arranges the airline's medical clearance, works with the hospital or care team at the far end, and plans the handover on arrival, in either direction. If a journey needs an air ambulance rather than a commercial flight, we say so and refer you.
Let’s plan the journey
Tell us about the traveller and the trip. We'll recommend the level of support, plan the journey, and have a Travel Companion or Medical Escort ready to go.
+1 (403) 536-9446