Clinic to address Digby doctor shortage closes due to lack of doctor

A clinic set up to address the doctor shortage in Digby, N.S., has closed due to a lack of doctors.

The so-called unattached patients' clinic served people who couldn't find a family doctor. But the physician who was working there left in March.

Now patients are left with no choice but to go to local emergency room, no matter how small the problem.

Directed to emergency

Saskia Geerts said she has been relying on the clinic since her family doctor passed away several years ago. But when she called to renew a prescription in May, she was told to go to the emergency department instead.

"I was quite shocked, actually, because that should not be what the emergency department is for," she told CBC Radio's Maritime Noon.  

Geerts said she started calling around seeking anyone who could help. The local nurse practitioner wasn't seeing any new patients, neither were any other doctors' offices within an hour's drive.

Long waits

She also called health clinics, some of which said the waiting lists are up to 15 months long. Then she tried the emergency room of Digby General Hospital — five times. 

"Each time there were about 20-plus people sitting there," said Geerts.

She waited more than five hours during one visit, then gave up. 

"I own a small business and we're getting into tourism season," she said. "It's kind of hard to go and sit in an emergency department for six hours when you have to be at your business." 

'Pretty typical'

Ben Cleveland, the mayor of Digby, said Geerts' story is "pretty typical."

He said he's been told there are as many as 6,000 people in his community without a family doctor.

"If you walk into our [emergency department] here at the Digby hospital, you'll see many patients are there for simple prescriptions or minor issues that shouldn't be addressed at the ED," he said.

In fact, Cleveland said he drives an hour and a half to visit his own family doctor.

"Rural communities — not just Digby — right across Nova Scotia, right across the country actually are facing this struggle," he said.

"We've been successful in attracting three doctors over the last several years and know it's becoming a retention problem on top of trying to attract doctors, so I certainly hope it doesn't get worse." 

Finding the right fit is tough

Cleveland said a lot of doctors are young and prefer to practice in urban areas.

"When they do arrive here, they find themselves overworked, working long hours in a long patient base. Those doctors, they're not prepared to do that like a doctor 50 or 60 years ago," said Cleveland. 

Geerts said her local pharmacy has extended her prescription for one month while she searches for a doctor. She found a clinic in Yarmouth that's taking patients, but not until August.

Geerts said it's not acceptable. 

"I don't need a family doctor, I haven't had a family doctor in several years but we do need accessible health care," she said.