How to find a doctor?
What can you do to help yourself find a physician?
- Visit the Health Care Connect website at http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/ms/healthcareconnect/public/default.aspx or call 1-800-445-1822
- Monitor local media for announcements on new physicians locating in Durham.
- Talk to family, friends, neighbours and health clinics who may know of a physician accepting new patients.
In the meantime, if you have a health care issue, call the Telehealth Ontario at 1-866-797-000 (TTY: 1-866-797-0007) for access to a registered nurse, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week; OR visit your nearest urgent care clinic or emergency department.
The Current Challenge:
- For many reasons, Ontario and every other province in Canada are experiencing a significant shortage of physicians. Ontario currently has a shortage of approximately 2,000 doctors, including family physicians and specialists. Over the next five years, an estimated 23% of Ontario's 22,000 physicians are expected to retire.
- Today, finding a family physician is one of the biggest challenges for new families to Durham or those whose physician is retiring or moving.
- Although federal, provincial and local governments, regulatory bodies (e.g. College of Physicians & Surgeons) and associations (e.g. Ontario Hospital Association, Ontario Medical Association) are working hard to improve the situation, there are no easy answers or quick fixes.
- Despite the fact that hospitals have little ability to directly affect the supply of physicians to Ontario, Lakeridge Health has developed several initiatives to ease access to health care for those without a family physician. In addition, we are working in partnership with others locally and provincially to attract more physicians to Durham.