Barrie hospital offers training program for future doctors
Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) is welcoming a group of nine new residents starting their final two years of medical training as the push for new doctors continues.
"We're coming to training almost 100 family practice residents since we started, and we are keeping about 60 in our area," said Stu Murdoch, chief academic at RVH.
It's a program seeing success since 2009, with a goal of recruiting and keeping doctors local.
According to physician recruitment offices in Simcoe County, there is a shortage of 79 family physicians and 41 specialists.
In Barrie, there are more than 37,000 people without a doctor, a need amplified by the pandemic.
"One of the problems with COVID is that many people are retiring, so we are not being able to replace those retirements as well as the growth in Barrie," said Murdoch.
Karyssa Hamann is one of the first-year residents and says becoming a doctor is her calling.
"I kind of always knew it would be my path one way or another," said Hamann.
The residents learn alongside RVH staff, practicing medicine with a full caseload of patients.
"We have different rotations that we go through, and at the same time, we have three half days where we return to our own clinics and see our own patients and follow up on their chronic or acute issues," said Hamann.
Imelda Suen, another first-year resident, made the decision to come to Barrie from Vancouver.
"I really wanted to work in a community hospital and get exposed to the wide range in family medicine, including continuative care, being able to see our patients in hospital," said Suen.
At the end of the two years, the residents have the option of choosing emergency or family medicine.
"Ideally, we like them to become a comprehensive family physician because of such a need, but at the same time, there is a real crisis for emergency physicians as well," said Murdoch.
Suen says she isn't sure if she will stay in the area, while Hamann says that's the plan for now.
Other hospitals are also seeing success, with a 70 to 85 per cent retention rate across the county.
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.