Several campaigns have been launched over the years aimed at bringing doctors to our region.
For several years now, clinics in Chase, Sicamous, Sorrento and Scotch Creek have endeavoured to attract physicians, offering various incentives (in addition to the opportunity to live in the Shuswap) to sweeten the deal.
One of the more memorable efforts was a wanted poster issued by the North Shuswap Health Care Society. Done up in classic western style, the March 2016 poster campaign offered a $5,000 reward “for information leading to the capture of a GP physician” willing to practice in Scotch Creek for a minimum of three years. The society was trying to replace Drs. Janet and Ken Bates who retired in 2014.
The following month, the North Shuswap Health Centre announced it would be able to bring in temporary doctors through Interior Health’s Rural Locum Physician program, which provides the North Shuswap Health Centre with 38 days of locum coverage per year.
However, as Gail McNeil Oliver, the centre’s executive director explained, that is to service a population of approximately 4,000 full-time local residents — and a population of up to 30,000 during the summer tourist season.
On top of this, the health centre also sees patients from neighbouring communities as far away as Kamloops.
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Not wanting to have to rely on fundraisers just to support current service levels — never mind efforts to attract doctors — the North Shuswap Health Care Society has petitioned the Columbia Shuswap Regional District and the B.C. Ministry of Health for stable, steady financial support. A small tax, explained Oliver, to provide some base funding.
While provision of health care isn’t a responsibility of local government, support and promotion of economic development is.
Integral to this is being able to offer a desirable range of healthcare services, including family doctors.
The District of Sicamous recognized this and, in addition to adopting different incentives to attract physicians, it also purchased the community’s main healthcare facility, and has plans to construct a new medical building that will provide office space to the district’s medical professionals.
Some may view this as another form of downloading on local government, but clearly attracting doctors is a challenge requiring greater innovation and resources than what can or should be expected of community-run health centres.