A Timmins task force wants to make the doctor shortage a municipal election issue
A physician recruitment task force in Timmins is urging candidates in the upcoming municipal election to make the local doctor shortage a priority in their platforms.
The group said the city is in a health care crisis and if the community doesn't come together, the problem will get dramatically worse.
“I don’t think they recognize how big of a problem it really is in Timmins," said Doctor Lesley Griffiths.
"I mean if you look at the numbers, the loss of the 10 physicians over the past few years, that has a real impact on patients."
Griffiths is a member of the task force and she said its goal is to create a robust recruitment and retention program for primary care physicians in Timmins by involving as many community partners as possible.
The task force is calling on all municipal election candidates to commit their support for physician recruitment.
“There’s a debate happening next week and I wanted candidates to have time to plan for this response," Michelle Stevens, task force member and executive director of the Centre de Santé Communautaire de Timmins, told CTV News.
Timmins and District Hospital hired a physician recruiter in the summer and the task force said that was necessary and helpful. However, it is also asking other organizations, businesses and mines in the community to offer support.
“Like our neighbouring communities who are offering financial incentives to establish in the community we want to do the same thing," said Stevens.
"What would that look like coming from the TEDC (Timmins Economic Development Corporation), from the city, from the greater area as well; we’re kind of looking for an ask in terms of who can contribute to the cause," added Griffiths.
The task force said according to data from the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM), Timmins needs seventeen primary care physicians based on its current population and it has a goal to bring in three to five doctors a year over the next five years.
A mayoral debate, hosted by Near North Video Productions will take place in Northern College's cafeteria on Oct. 13 at 7:00 p.m. The debate will also be livestreamed on www.yourplacetowatch.com. The task force said it will be looking forward to hearing how candidates would address the issue if elected.
More information on the Oct. 13 debate can be found on Near North Video Productions’ Facebook page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.