Norfolk earmarks $250,000 for doctor recruitment

Norfolk County is putting $250,000 toward the recruitment of doctors to address a significant shortage of those practicing in the municipality.

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At a council-in-committee meeting on Tuesday, councilors approved taking the money from Safe Restart Funding given by the province to municipalities to deal with the cost of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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“Stabilizing and rebuilding the healthcare system is one of the potential uses for that funding,” said Heidy Van Dyk, general manager of corporate services, in a presentation to advisors.

Information provided by Workforce Health Ontario shows Norfolk County has fewer primary care physicians per 100,000 people than the provincial average, and 17 per cent of residents don’t currently have a family doctor.

The situation will become more critical as local doctors withdraw. Twenty-two per cent of primary care physicians in Norfolk are over age 60, and 21 per cent of Norfolk residents are patients of those aging doctors.

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In an earlier report to councilors, Norfolk CAO Al Meneses said the county could quickly get to a situation where one in three residents will be without a doctor, forcing them to go to the emergency department, where treatment is much more expensive.

With funding confirmed – final approval is still required at an upcoming council meeting – the Norfolk County physician recruitment committee will meet to discuss strategies, which Van Dyk said could include financial incentives to lure doctors; paying for physicians to visit Norfolk and have some “local experiences” paid for by the county; and having county representatives attend recruitment events attended by medical students.

Also becoming popular, said Mayor Amy Martin, is municipalities offering scholarships to local students attending medical school with the stipulation they return to Norfolk to practice for a certain period of time.

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“It doesn’t pay off right away but, in the long term, you are investing in community members who already have roots planted in the community as opposed to trying to go out to an urban center and find someone and sell them on why they should come and live in Norfolk,” said Martin.

Doctor shortages are being felt in communities across the province and the country. Medical students who were once drawn to family medicine are looking for other specialties with fewer administrative burdens and lower burnout rates. It’s estimated 2.3 million Ontarians are without a family doctor.

But Coun. Adam Veri questioned Norfolk spending money on physician recruitment.

“How is it we as a municipality can give financial incentives to doctors?” Veri said. “Not to say they aren’t valuable, but we need staff everywhere. How is that different than giving $250,000 to a committee to attract a business here that would employ 50 people?”

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Van Dyk said many municipalities are using financial incentives to recruit doctors.

Veri raised concerns about creating a cycle of doctors moving from community to community.

Menses said other municipalities are spending much more money to boost their doctor population.

“This is not going to be easy,” he said. “$250,000 compared to what others are doing is likely going to be a drop.”

Menses said the local search could also include nurse practitioners and those involved in paramedicine. He said a strategy will be put together by the recruitment team and a report will come to council for approval before any money is spent.

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