Yorkton population numbers in

The Saskatchewan Ministry of Health's 2011 Covered Population Report puts Yorkton's population at 18,471 as of June 2011.

That's significantly less than the number given in last year's report-19,588-but the ministry has since revealed that an allocation error caused many of its figures in 2010 to be inaccurate.

"Basically what happened was we made a switchover to a new method of trying to calculate them, and where certain information wasn't in the record, it defaulted back to some old information," explains Susan Antosh, CEO of eHealth Saskatchewan.

The mistake, which was rectified for the 2011 report, caused some rural residents to be incorrectly allocated into urban centres such as Yorkton.

Furthermore, says Antosh, it is "not possible" to go back and determine the correct numbers for 2010. But the CEO believes Yorkton's actual covered population that year would have been "right around 18,000."

That scales back the staggering 11 percent growth reported for Yorkton in 2010 to a somewhat saner figure. Putting 2011's population data next to the most recent reliable figure (17,608 in 2009) reveals an average annual growth during the last two years of just under 2.5 percent.

Still, Yorkton Mayor James Wilson is more inclined to believe last year's estimate, despite it being significantly higher than the official Census of Canada figure.

"We know we're larger than that."

Population numbers tend to be under-reported by censuses for a variety of reasons, not least of which is residents neglecting to fill them in. The Covered Population Report, by contrast, accounts for everyone registered for healthcare in the province (but not those registered federally, including RCMP officers, military personnel, and inmates).

Susan Antosh cautions against depending on the report as a population estimate.

"One of the key things to remember here is that this is not a census. And although it seems that perhaps communities may use it for that, the intent of this report is actually to approximate the expected number of people who might use a particular area for healthcare service."

The specific source of error in 2010 was a pair of separate fields for mailing and home addresses on the province's healthcare registration form. In cases where registrants failed to fill out a home address, the system defaulted to using the provided mailing address as that person's place of residence. This was not a serious issue when using the report for its intended purpose, says Antosh, as citizens typically access healthcare in the same community where they pick up their mail.

But this is also a better measure of residency than the self-identification method of the national census, argues Mayor Wilson. People who pick up their mail in Yorkton are effectively citizens of the city.

"The reality is, the city still provides services for them. So that's more of a true reflection."

The gap between census numbers and other population estimates is a source of frustration for the city's administration, as municipal funding is based on the census tally.

But by any measure, Yorkton is in the midst of strong population growth: something the mayor says is exciting to see.

"I think it's a true reflection of our times-that in Saskatchewan we have a healthy, robust economy. But to add to that, it's also a reflection of our city that has been a centre of service for the region and also of the joy we have of the quality of life-it's a great place to work, live, and play."

The growth also adds stress to services such as healthcare and education and creates pressure to expand the city's borders.

"That's why it's proper that all institutions gather together and communicate and plan for the future," says Wilson.

Yorkton's growth is part of a region-wide trend. According to the Covered Population Report (whose 2010 numbers Antosh considers accurate at this scale), the Sunrise Health Region's population grew from 56,807 in 2010 to 58,113 in 2011: an increase of 2.3 percent.

The report shows that every community in the Sunrise Health Region with a population greater than 400 grew between 2009 and 2011. Most communities grew by more than 10 percent annually during that period, with the leading communities-Norquay, Pelly, and Saltcoats-at double that rate, increasing their populations by about 40 percent since 2009.