By Derek Cornet

La Ronge receives provincial funding for two more doctors

Aug 15, 2018 | 5:00 PM

A petition launched in May demanding more doctors in La Ronge caught the attention of the provincial government.

In an email to larongeNOW from Dr. Veronica McKinney, the director of Northern Medical Services, she explained the organization, as well as the Saskatchewan Health Authority and Ministry of Health, have been working for months to evaluate service demand and workload at the La Ronge Medical Clinic. She noted the review supported increasing physicians in the community by two to provide enough capacity to meet service demands.

“Having said that, we are certainly very appreciative of the support that the community has shown through the petition,” McKinney stated.

While its unknown how many people signed the petition started by clinic manager Rhonda Oliver, a poll on the clinic’s Facebook page indicates 98 per cent of more than 1,100 respondents thought additional doctors were needed in La Ronge. McKinney added there have been 11 full-time equivalent positions in the town for the last decade and the addition of two more will push that number to 13. There are currently 18 physicians in La Ronge sharing the 11 positions.

It could be up to six months before another doctor moves to the community, McKinney said, as the hiring process will be long. She noted Northern Medical Services has already started looking for eligible physicians who will be a good fit for the current team of health care professionals.

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“In the interim, we will also look to fill these spots with locums, physicians who work for short-term stints but do not commit to long-term contracts,” McKinney said.

McKinney went on to say all physicians who work in La Ronge support primary care in Pinehouse Lake, Southend, Stanley Mission and Wollaston Lake. The arrangement allows residents from those communities to travel for medical care less often.

derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno