Cambridge family doctor shortage continues as provincial trend worsens

Efforts to recruit family physicians is ongoing for recruiter Donna Gravelle, and the organization Doctors4Cambridge, as the city continues to grapple with shortages.

Gravelle said Cambridge currently has somewhere between 88 and 90 family doctors, a number that's 10 to 15 short of where it should be given population density.

"We lost seven physicians this year due to various reasons and have managed to find replacements, however, we're still short the number needed for our population and anticipated retirements," Gravelle said.

"The biggest struggle, for all communities, is the lack of available candidates currently seeking family medicine opportunities."

Several issues are causing the shortage, including the early retirement among doctors after the pandemic and administrative burdens taking up more time.

And the backlog could become worse given the The College of Family Physicians of Canada wants to increase the length of family medicine residency from two years to three.

The thought process centres around the belief that an extra year gives potential doctors more exposure to complex cases but those opposed say it will only make the current shortage worse.

Gravelle said a lot of walk-in type clinics have popped up since the pandemic but Doctors4Cambridge doesn't work closely with them as its main focus is ensuring people have a primary health care doctor.

Cambridge isn't the only city dealing with this issue as the Ontario College of Family Physicians is painting a grim picture of the future.

Its data shows 1 in 4 Ontarians, or 4.4 million people, will be without a family doctor by 2026. That number has grown from 1 in 5 or 3 million people from a year ago.

"It's clear that millions more Ontarians will go without a family doctor unless immediate changes are made to provide supports for family doctors,” Dr. Mekalai Kumanan, president of the Ontario College of Family Physicians and who practices in Cambridge, said in a release on the college's website.

The college also points to retirements, the rate of graduates, population growth and issues with retaining family doctors as causes for concern.

It wants the provincial government to help ensure doctors work as part of supportive teams and can limit unnecessary paperwork so they can spend more time with patients.

"Every Ontarian deserves a family doctor.  We can work towards this by making changes to support family doctors so that they can focus on caring for their patients,” Dr. Kumanan said.

“It’s not too late for the Ontario government to change course and take immediate steps to provide support to family doctors to ensure patients can get the best care possible.” 

Back at the end of May, Doctors4Cambridge welcomed 10 medical students from Queen's University to tour the city and show off what the region has to offer for potential employment and lifestyle.

While no such visits are planned for the remainder of the year, Gravelle said discussions are going to be happening in the new year for events in 2024.

"There are systematic problems that need to be addressed to encourage more physicians to enter the family medicine field," she said.

"We're actively trying to recruit more physicians to Cambridge and I suggest orphaned patients check our website as we try to keep an active listing of physicians and clinics taking new patients."

To view the active list of clinics taking on new patients visit doctors4cambridge.com.