A family medicine training program in Thompson will bring new doctors to the community and elsewhere in Northern Manitoba to complete their residencies following graduation, Manitoba Health Minister Cameron Friesen announced Feb. 25.
“Providing a program that lets physicians experience life in the north and how people in the region access health care is an excellent way to prepare them for a career in northern medicine,” Friesen said in a press release. “Following the success of similar programs in the other health regions, this new partnership between the University of Manitoba and the Northern Regional Health Authority (NRHA) will support stronger recruitment and retention efforts across Northern Manitoba.”
NRHA CEO Helga Bryant said that the medical school graduates would gain invaluable experience through the program.
“We believe this program will help physicians better understand the opportunities they can find while practising in Northern Manitoba,” she said. “Our medical teams are very excited to provide training opportunities for new physicians, while enhancing access to care for northern residents.”
Dr. José François, medical director of Shared Health’s family medicine program and head of the Department of Family Medicine at the Max Rady College of Medicine at the University of Manitoba said during an announcement at City Hall that he’s excited that Thompson has joined the list of community sites for teaching in family medicine.
“Over the last 10 years, the Department of Family Medicine has really taken a step to move learners away from Winnipeg, and into communities,” he explained, noting that Thompson is “an anchor” of health care in the north. “We look forward to working with family physicians at the Thompson clinic to make that experience a positive one. Family medicine graduates spend two years in the residency program, and with the resources available in the community, we think that most of that training can happen here.”
Mayor Colleen Smook said that she was hoping the program would happen in a “couple years,” but it ended up only taking about 16 months to become a reality in Thompson.
“This is just the beginning of great things in Thompson,” she said at the press conference, adding that three operating rooms at the Thomspon General Hospital shut down by water damage last June are set to reopen in a couple of weeks. “This program, with the [medical] residents coming, is so exciting. I’m excited for the city.”
While the program is based in Thompson, the medical school graduates will complete core training rotations across the region, preparing them to practise medicine in environments such as community hospitals, health centres, nursing stations and care homes in First Nation, rural and remote communities.
“Addressing the unique health needs and inequities of Indigenous populations in the region is a core skill for family physicians working in the north,” the provincial press release said. “The 2016 census data shows that 71 per cent of the people living in the northern health region self-identify as Indigenous.”
