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Kevin Carter, Saugeen Shores' Chair of the Doctor Recruitment
Committee, met with local doctors Monday, June 29, in an attempt to
resolve the possible closing of the Southampton Memorial Hospital
emergency room proposed for September.
"The doctors care and don't want to see the Emergency Room (ER)
close," said Carter. "We have been the most successful community in
southwestern Ontario when it comes to doctor recruitment. We have a
new physician, Dr. Sommerville, coming on board in the fall. She is
going to work with First Nations, the town and do an ER shift every
week. We have also just had the commitment from Doctors Holloman and
Brown for another 10 years." (next column)
30/06/2009 10:09 PM
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According to some sources, the possible closing of the ER may be due to
the fact that doctors did not want to participate as much as they could
have. Carter said that he is not convinced this situation is the fault
of the doctors. "I have been involved in doctor recruitment for eight
years,' he added, "and if I thought it was because of the doctors, I
would say so. I think it's a combination of things."
According to Carter, he sees a void in the leadership between the Grey
Bruce Health Services, the Province and the municipalities. "We met with
the town last week and, hopefully, we are going to meet with our MP
Carol Mitchell. The Mayor is very hopeful that she will be able to
help."
Under Provincial funding, hospitals/municipalities with a doctor
shortage qualify for more dollars and doctors can charge more for ER
service. Unfortunately, Saugeen Shores' success rate with recruitment
means that there are fewer provincial dollars available when it comes to
ER service.
Given the rural location and the severity of winter road conditions in
the area, many residents have expressed concern about the possible
closure.
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