With a waitlist of nearly 15 per cent of Nova Scotia’s population in need of a family doctor, the shortage of doctors in Nova Scotia contiue to be outlined by notices given to residents.
All four physicians at the Southend Family Practice, located in the Halifax Professional Centre on Spring Garden Road, are closing their practices as of Aug. 30.
It comes as Dr. Krishna Myneni notified patients he’s leaving his practice in Nova Scotia at the end of July. According to former patients, this has left 3,000 of his clients stranded.
One clinic in Clayton Park has been trying to fill positions since they lost one of their doctors in April. Finding a doctor has been proved incredibly difficult. According to Shellene Becket, the senior director, it could as long as a year before another doctor fills the vacant spot.
The doctors have been taking on extra patients to try to cope with the backlog, but haven’t been able to take on all.
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“It’s heartbreaking,” told the Becket with Regency Park Family Practice.
“They’re (residents) coming in person knocking on our door, saying can you help us and we’re not always in a position to be able to do it.”
Becket said doctors in the clinic are seeing more patients with complex care need due to a lack of care. Residents have been prolonging care, causing complicated health cases in the clinic.
The clinic has had to turn away patients who’ve been coming to the doors in recent years.
In a new report updated on Aug. 21, nearly 3,500 residents were added to the growing list, which has now reached 152,001 residents.
Nova Scotia’s central zone has been amongst the hardest hit on the waitlist, accounting for those looking to get off the list. The latest data shows that 47 per cent of those on the waitlist are in the HRM and surrounding area.
When asked how many family doctors have left their practice, the health minister could not provide a number on how many were lost, saying that it would be extremely difficult, but did boast of how many the province added.
“It would be very difficult to say ‘this many in and this many out,'” she told Global News on Monday.
“What I can tell you is that we recruited 168 physicians, which is the largest number of physicians that have been recruited in the past year.”
Thompson told Global News that the province has increased the ways patients can use the health-care system for those who aren’t on the list, boasting new ways for care through pharmacies and virtual care.
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