Joe Blakeman, the swimmer of Lac Ste. Anne County, said Onoway currently has three doctors, but one is leaving at the end of October and another is preparing to take maternity leave. “It’s going to be a struggle,” he said, noting that even with three doctors, most residents already have to wait about a month before getting an appointment to see a doctor. “A month can be terrible.” Blakeman said the area also has a growing number of seniors, and he hears about people going to the emergency room to seek medical attention when a family doctor is sometimes needed. “They deserve to have a doctor here and not have to drive 30 to 45 minutes.” Story continues below ad Bob Winterford is a councilor in Onoway and said the community, located about 65 kilometers northwest of Edmonton, is growing. “We know we’re in a competitive market,” he said. “It should never be about competition when it comes to human health. “There are doctors needed in almost every rural community across the country.” Both Winterford and Blakeman said to mitigate the competition, the province should create a more efficient process to ensure more rural communities have an adequate number of doctors. “I think there is a solution,” Winterford said. “There are a lot of immigrant doctors coming to this country and I think a lot of them live in countries that would rather be in a rural community.” Blakeman said he believes the government needs to streamline the process for training doctors overseas so they can practice in Canada sooner. “We’re doing what we need to do, but … we’re getting zero help from the top,” he said, adding he believes Alberta Health Services needs to do more to address the shortage. “The whole system is disappointing. “They have made it very difficult for foreign-trained doctors.” In a statement issued to Global News, Steve Buick, press secretary to Health Secretary Jason Copping, said “we appreciate the concern at Onoway and will support recruitment there in any way we can.” Trending Stories
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Story continues below ad “But the reality is that adding doctors to smaller communities is challenging, and it’s become more so because of the (COVID-19) pandemic,” Buick said. “The recruitment and retention of GPs in rural areas is a top priority for Minister Copping and we are constantly looking at new approaches to support this. “We work every day with communities, AHS, RhPAP (Rural Health Professions Action Plan) and other partners to recruit doctors to smaller communities and rural areas, and we’re seeing success despite the pandemic. As of January 1, AHS has announced 20 new physicians in rural communities, in addition to the 11 physicians who have committed to practice in Lethbridge.” READ MORE: 17 new doctors coming to Lethbridge, some before winter: AHS Buick said Alberta currently spends $90 million a year on rural doctors, “including the most generous incentives in the country for rural practice,” and noted the province has recently entered into a tentative agreement with the Alberta Medical Association that “ will support the recruitment and retention of doctors, including rural doctors in particular.” READ MORE: Alberta doctors to vote on tentative deal with province Opposition health critic David Shepherd said he believed “no programme, no incentive — no financial incentive, whatever you want to put on the table — is capable of overcoming the scale of mistrust that has been created by the UCP government and his attacks on doctors”. Story continues below ad In 2020, the provincial government ended a long-standing master agreement with doctors that created new rules that doctors said would hurt the bottom line for some family and rural practices, a move many health professionals said led to mistrust of the government. READ MORE: Alberta government ends master deal with doctors. new rules are coming Announced earlier this year, the province’s Rural Education Supplement and Integrated Physician Experience (RESIDE) program has a budget of $2 million per year for three years. “In its first few months, the program attracted significant interest and approximately 20 applications and led to a new physician joining the practice in Cold Lake. but most applicants did not meet the criteria,” Buick said. “Minister Copping had feedback that the criteria were too narrow, so he approved some changes. “The revised program is accepting applications now and we hope it will achieve its goals in the future. If more changes are needed or if there are other initiatives that could help, we will look at them.” READ MORE: RESIDE program hopes to incentivize young family doctors to work in 15 rural Alberta areas Winterford said Onoway wants to make sure citizens don’t have to worry about doctor shortages. “Losing a doctor is important because people who would normally go see that doctor now have to figure out where they’re going and if they can go,” he said, adding that he realizes people are working to deal with the situation. Story continues below ad Blakeman said he believes AHS has “kind of dropped the ball” when it comes to rural health care in the province. “It’s really disappointing, but we’re going to fight,” he said, adding that he believes the beauty of the area lies in Onoway and the city’s relatively close proximity to west Edmonton will appeal to some doctors. “We’ve also had doctors who love it here because of the country, because of our lakes, because of our recreation.” –With files from Morgan Black, Global News © 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
