In the face of Ontario’s shortage of family physicians, the Guelph-Wellington Physician Recruitment & Retention Committee – along with its supporting partners – has reaffirmed its commitment to increasing the supply of healthcare professionals. The Committee continues to work hard to bring more family doctors to our community and ensure we keep the ones that we already have.
The Committee and the new Community Healthcare Coordinator will focus exclusively on the recruitment and retention of family physicians and healthcare professionals who will allow us to achieve our goal of helping individuals find doctors.
In an effort to match orphan patient with doctors, the Committee is reviewing the current application process with the intent of implementing a more efficient process by early September. As of this time, the Committee is no longer using the current process and is no longer accepting applications. It will make sure that all existing applications on file will be distributed to new doctors in the area based on the date the application was received.
We understand the public’s frustration in trying to locate a general practitioner who is accepting new patients. The Committee is pleased to report that six or seven new physicians will be setting up their practice in our community before Christmas, which will significantly reduce the number of orphan patients. We will formalize a method of communicating the availability of physicians looking for patients to the public in the near future.
The Committee needs your support and your patience as we work together through this difficult time.