Northern BC town will be down to one doctor

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CHETWYND (NEWS1130) – A northern BC town is losing all but one of its doctors.

About 7,000 people living in and around Chetwynd rely on its present contingent of four doctors.

But come July, three of those four will be leaving.

People left without a physician will have to travel to Dawson Creek to seek medical advice. That’s an hour away.

The situation has left the Northern Health Authority and local political leaders scrambling.

Village councillor and health committee member Ernest Pfanner says competition for doctors is intense among northern towns.

“It’s kind of community against community to see where doctors want to relocate. We will be attending doctors’ tradeshows and conferences to get Chetwynd’s name out there. We’ll invite them here for a visit.”

A bonus worth $100,000 worked to entice a doctor to Chetwynd two years ago. But he will be asked to repay it, because he is leaving before fulfilling a three-year contract.

Pfanner outlines the immediate plan.

“We’ll try to cover the shortage with locums, bringing in temporary doctors until we are up to full staff again. Until there are enough to service our needs, people will have to travel to see a doctor.”

The acute doctor shortage comes as the village opens up a brand new clinic.

Chetwynd, like many other small communities in BC, has relied on the recruitment of doctors from South Africa. But in 2011, Canada agreed to stop picking up doctors from that country. The BC College of Physicians and Surgeons subsequently changed its bylaws and no longer recognizes credentials obtained in South Africa.

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