One important thing we did not anticipate when moving to Prince Edward Island was the state of medical care in the province. Having previously lived in capital cities; first, Halifax and then, Ottawa, we had become accustomed to having access to a broad choice of physicians at any given time.
We did not realize that, because P.E.I. had no medical school, it was literally without the ability to attract new med school grads and, therefore, hadn't had enough doctors for its population in years. Its declining population, I might add. It seems to me that P.E.I. has actually experienced negative population growth in some recent years, because of its young people leaving in search of employment; in particular, going to Alberta while the oil boom was on. Yet, there are thousands of people on provincial registries who still haven't managed to get a family physician, sad to say, despite the lower numbers.
Experts say the problem is universal and is caused by a combination of young grads wanting shorter hours than ever before and women entering medicine in larger numbers. Women take time off for pregnancy or child care leave. But the number of spots in med schools has not increased to compensate for these dramatic changes. So, essentially, there are fewer doctor hours available for people, worldwide. Add to that the lack of a med school and the fact that grads often find work or start practices in the provinces where they study, that leaves little old P.E.I. with a huge problem.
So we did not get a new doctor right away. Which was OK because our youngest would qualify for care from a pediatrician because of special needs and otherwise, we are pretty much a healthy family. Besides, we figured we could always go to clinics or the emergency outpatients department at our local hospital.
Yeah, sure.
If we did not mind waiting a minimum of three hours to see a doctor or having to compete with others vying for a spot in line in one of the clinics' foyers - I have literally seen lineups, during flu season, of 20 or 30 people, a couple of hours before a clinic opened its doors.
There have been some suggestions made to government about how to remedy the problem. Suggestions tailored to bring radical, positive change to the system. Like bringing in physicians' assistants, which are, incidentally, used in many American hospitals on the front lines, for similar reasons. And then there have been incentive programs set up to attract out-of-province and, sometimes, out-of-country doctors here to Spud Island. But none of it seems to be working.
Let's talk about why.
First of all, I'll share my experience with the one doctor I actually was assigned to after being on the "list" for about four years. The first time I saw him, I was really impressed with his professionalism, ability and bedside manner. I also got the feeling he really cared and wasn't in it for status or money or because everyone in his family had been a doctor. He explained things to me in a way that did not leave my head spinning. So far, so good. Then he sent me for a whole lot of blood work. While I was getting that done, the blood tech said that I must have Dr. So and So and, because she was right, I asked her how she knew. She told me that he always ran a lot of tests and that he wasn't making the province happy with it, either.
Gee whiz - I could hear this train coming before I saw it.
I guess none of the tests were positive so I did not see him for a few months after. But when I tried to see him again, the receptionist at the clinic where he had his practice told me he and his family had moved back to the States. Something about his wife missing her family.
Of course! And it had nothing to do with the fact he was repeatedly requesting tests that the province just did not want to pay for.
So, about six months later, lo and behold, I got another one of those phone calls from the province. Apparently the patients from the previous doctor were being given to a new one who had just moved to the Island. I had lucked out. But I didn't even get to see him before, he too, moved back home.
Which begged the question, "What the heck was going on here, anyway?"
And then I started thinking. In summer, P.E.I. is a pretty place to be. The ocean warms up and there are many sandy beaches as well as world class golf. It never gets too hot because there's always a cool breeze blowing.
But that's for about three months out of the year, otherwise known as the tourist season. I have heard it told that P.E.I. can see almost two million tourists in a good year. When you consider the population of the province is just under 140,000, that speaks volumes about how this little island literally comes to life around June 15 each year.
What those who only visit don't know is, on or around mid October, the whole Island, with the exception of Charlottetown, Summerside and possibly Montague, shuts down, culturally, for a long, bleak off season. The locals, born and raised here are fine with it too. Heck, they've been waiting on, cleaning up after and entertaining Off Islanders for possibly more than a hundred summers now, so they've earned their peace and quiet. When you couple that with the fact that the other two industries which support the economy are fishing and farming, you haven't got what we call really good chemistry for trendy, state of the art, cultural integrity.
Not to say it's completely dead here. No, we have our university and a few colleges as well as a lively bar scene in the capital. But leave Charlottetown and, other than outdoor sports, there isn't really much to do of an evening outside of the tourist season.
And don't get me talking about the shopping. Or should I say, lack of. Suffice to say, even Islanders with well established family roots regularly pay that awful bridge toll to shop in either Halifax or Moncton. When a designer clothing store dares to open, it is rarely patronized and generally goes under, sometimes within a couple of years.
Strange but true.
Finally - and I left this for last 'cause it really is the clincher - Islanders have this way of politely keeping newcomers at arm's length for long periods of time after they move here. Haven't a clue why. But it's true. Since having arrived here some 10 years ago, my family and I have been relegated to the population of what we affectionately call Come From Aways. We've only managed to get close to two families and they moved here from off Island too. Luckily for us, we were warned about it before we moved so were amply prepared to dig in our heels, come what may. We take a humorous approach to the whole thing, actually. But we have known others who are mystified and hurt by the cool reception they have received.
So, tell me - if you were a physician with a higher than average family income who has practiced and lived in a city - any city; either in Canada or the U.S. - would you relocate here?
I rest my case.
No comments:
Post a Comment