With nearly $2 million committed to recruiting physicians to work in Timmins, Dr. Doug Arnold, the chief of staff at the city’s hospital is hoping even more family doctors and specialists will make the city home.
Arnold is also part of the hospital’s recruitment team. He said the hospital recently received a $600,000 donation from Agnico Eagle, a mining company that operates in the area.
That donation combined with equal contributions from the City of Timmins and the hospital means there is $1.8 million to help physicians get established in Timmins.
“It is a stipend that has a return of service, which would require them to sign on for four years,” Arnold said.
“So that is one piece that we use in our recruitment efforts.”
A $150,000, interest-free loan through a partnership with the venture centre is also on the table.
Arnold said most physicians graduate from medical school with about $300,000 of debt and these financial incentives can give new physicians an opportunity to get ahead where they might not elsewhere.
Long work weeks
Dr. Dominik Nowak of the Ontario Medical Association said too many medical students are no longer seeing family practice as a viable career choice and the province needs to update funding models.
“Let’s get rid of that 19 hours weekly of unnecessary administration and bureaucracy that right now doctors are doing,” Nowak said.
“Let us do doctor work and let’s make sure that we support practices with teams. So build in, you know, the nurses, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, social workers, all sorts of health professionals into a team, all working together with the doctor in that team environment to share in the work.”
In the last five years, the Timmins and District Hospital has recruited 24 physicians, but 45 more are needed -- 20 family doctors and 25 specialists.
The $1.8 million will help 30 physicians over the next three years.
