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Letter in Response to the report on Council Meeting comments on the new Medical Centre Clinic in Port Elgin |
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ED Note: Read the Council Meeting report Medical Center saga continues ... before reading the letter below. For what it is worth here is some insight into our doctor situation and why the Port Elgin clinic in tandem to the Southampton clinic is vital for this community. The medical clinics are a unique situation, and l am confident in time both our clinics will prove to be a very necessary investment. The profession of being a family doctor has changed over the years including where and how doctors practice, yet we have been blessed with positive results this past while and now boast one of the deepest doctor groups around. There are two main reasons for the success we currently enjoy. First the doctors themselves: Dr. Mike Marriott has been a star for this town when it comes to helping interested doctors learn about Saugeen Shores. Dr Marriott has been on the committee for many years now. Dr. Marriott though will tell you this is much larger than just him as every doctor in town has been very positive and supportive of new doctors investigating 'us'. Between the doctors and the working environments (clinics) the feedback has been strong. The second reason is this council led by mayor Mike Smith(and the last one led by Mayor Mark Kraemer) have done an outstanding job supporting and leading this recruiting and retention effort and as such we are the BEST 'doctor' positioned community in the Grey Bruce Health System and perhaps Southwestern Ontario. It has taken over 8 years of work (by many of our doctors and other people in the community), planning, and investment by the council to find and keep the excellent group of doctors we have today. Success breeds success, and the truth is even without provincial incentives (because the province deems us 'full') we have doctors living and working in other areas considering joining the current team and moving to this great community. Be assured we are not full. The concept of 'recruiting' and 'retaining' is not normal everyday type business. It is never over. We have momentum and must maintain it; our town council knows and understands this. For a new doc to make a decision about moving here is 'emotional'. If the clinic is not ready for the new doc right now then it is too easy to 'lose' this interested party -- and they don't come back because another community --- more organized than us is waiting for them 13/01/2009 04:24 PM |
The other thing to consider is that sometime soon 1 or 2 doctors will consider retirement or decide to move closer to family (you cannot blame them for this) --- you never know these things and certainly never get enough notice to plan for it. If we take our foot off the gas it will cost us double again and twice the time to reheat the program. We now have potential doctor candidates (trust me they have been few and far between) in our system and we are able to help them at an appropriate pace. We have a small town 'system' that includes allowing the potential to discover our community, the great people, the beach, the fantastic docs and nurses working and living here, and yes the clinics ...they help (big time) 'close' the deal AND they have helped KEEP the current docs here because they are new and fresh and support positive work environments. The town council has done an amazing job with the new Port Elgin clinic. It rivals the Southampton clinic. This council needs to be commended for getting it done as fast and as nice as they did. I assure you it is one of the first things mentioned when speaking with doctors interested in moving here, and the 5 doctors working in the clinic now are both impressed and very happy to be working in the building. Bringing a doctor into this community to work at the hospital or clinics is not always easy. We are a well kept secret on the shoreline, it is part of the mystique for sure BUT you still need assets to 'outsell' another community and their professional recruiting teams. We are volunteers working with a very supportive council. There are hundreds of communities across the country, all with a 'line in the water', looking for a new doctor --the problem is there are so few available. Once we have been able to secure an interested doctor Saugeen Shores has been an easy sell because the people and the doctors within this community are fantastic, but also because we have pushed ourselves ahead of the curve and been proactive with the clinics! We have been lucky to find and to keep this wonderful group of doctors. The clinics will prove to be a solid investment. My thoughts. Respectfully, Kevin Carter, Chairman, Dr. Recruitment and Retention committee
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