Doctors are badly needed in Lambton County. This scholarship is trying to attract them
Jocelynn De Koning has always felt drawn toward family medicine.
Not only does it allow for versatility, but it also provides a continuity of care, facilitating long-term relationships with patients in your community that can last years or even decades, she says.
"There's no other specialty where you can follow someone from when they're born until they pass away," De Koning said.
The mother of two plans to eventually start her own practice in Lambton County once she's done with her medical training, a region that, like the rest of Canada, struggles with an acute doctor shortage.
In helping her meet that goal, De Koning, a second-year resident in family medicine at Central Lambton Family Health Team, was recently named one of five recipients of a scholarship aimed at bringing healthcare professionals to Sarnia and Lambton.
Administered by the Sarnia Community Foundation (SCF), the Norma and Don Moore Memorial Scholarship began in 2017 with a $1 million donation from Don Moore, a resident of Oil Springs. Don Moore died in February 2022 at the age of 93, eight years after wife Norma at the age of 87.
The scholarship supports doctors or nurse practitioners enrolled in a program that will lead to a licence to practice in Ontario, with preference given to those planning to practice in Lambton, SCF says on its website.
The first funds were handed out in 2018, and since then, nearly $250,000 has been disbursed, including $37,500 total to De Koning and the four other recipients — Jack Soeder, Melissa Chopcian, and married couple Jordan and Siobhan LeSarge.
One person received $5,000, while De Koning and three others received $8,000, which she says she's using to pay down her line of credit. "It helps me, you know, have a little bit of less financial stress," she said.
Tuition and fees for Ontario university MD programs can clock in at upwards of $26,000 per year.
"Two of the students are doing really specialized neurologic medicine. I think it was Jordan said the work he's doing, there's only one of those doctors in Sarnia-Lambton," said Mike Barron, SCF's executive director.
He notes the need for more doctors comes as the number of locals entering old age grows. Nearly 25 per cent of Lambton County residents were 65 or older as of 2021, above the provincial average of 18.5 per cent. The county's median age was about 46, compared to 41 for Ontario.
"Whether it's being a family doctor to help the need in the community, or if it's a specialized (practice) that's going to help those (who) would probably have to leave our community … if they could have the service or procedure here in Sarnia, that would just make life better."
At least 13 per cent of Ontarians didn't have access to a regular health care provider in 2023, Statistics Canada data shows. According to the Ontario College of Family Physicians, at least 2.5 million patients had no doctor in 2023, a figure they believe will rise to 4.4 million in 2026.
On the eve of the provincial election, the Ford government announced $1.4 billion in new funding for an action plan to connect two million more people in Ontario with a primary care provider.
Last month, the government issued a call for proposals for up to 80 new or expanded primary care teams to serve 300,000 patients.
Doctor shortages are particularly acute in rural communities and in smaller cities. In Sarnia alone, the Ontario Medical Association estimates more than 10,000 patients had no regular primary care provider in 2022, compared to just over 8,200 in 2020.
In smaller communities, not having a regular physician often means driving to another community to see a doctor, or potentially waiting hours in an emergency department, De Koning said.
One study by the Ontario College of Family Physicians found 670,000 people in Ontario need to travel more than 50 km to see their family doctor. Separately, the college says family doctors report spending up to 19 hours a week doing paperwork instead of seeing patients.
"I'm seeing a lot of older physicians, family physicians, that are telling me that they're burned out … Compensation has not met up to these increased demands, and people are tired," De Koning said.
"It scares me a little bit hearing that from my preceptors and from my colleagues, but I'm hopeful things will change."
She adds she would like to see more done to prepare family doctors for the business realities of running their own practice.
cbc.ca
