As the population grows, thousands of people in Alliston are without a family physician as the town deals with a critical doctor shortage.
"We're in a growth mode, and there are a lot of people coming into our municipality and doctors are crutical," says New Tecumseth Mayor, Rick Milne.
The town recently lost three doctors through attrition and alleged misconduct.
Two former doctors, Arthur Corbin Hendrick and Nick Dortaj, who worked at a medical complex at 180 Parson Street, are under separate investigations launched by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario.
The college says Dr. Hendrick is being investigated "with regards to his opioid prescribing," while Dr. Dortaj is under investigation for "professional misconduct."
At Alliston Family Physicians, Dr. Brian Swarbreck is set to retire next month, and the clinic owner says it's challenging to find a replacement, leaving the clinic no choice but to offer care from afar. "Only thing we can now have is the walk-in clinic," says Abdul Amjad. "That's like a telehealth and doctors will be available online."
The town of New Tecumseth established a physician recruitment committee to bridge the gap. The committee's vice chair, David McLeish says the departing doctors at the clinic are in the fee-for-service model. "So they had a lot larger patient roster than new doctors are taking on, so there's still a need to attract more."
Currently, four new physicians in Alliston are taking new patients, but as the population grows, McLeish says it's not enough.
"I think over the next 10 years, or so, we're going to need about 30 physicians."
