'Maybe we shouldn't have moved here': Military family struggles to find doctor in Greater Victoria
A young military couple that's new to Vancouver Island is scrambling to find a family doctor, and they're questioning their move to the capital region entirely.
The couple and their two young sons recently packed up and headed to Sooke, B.C., from Winnipeg after father Yaz Malhas was transferred to CFB Esquimalt.
He says the stress of the move is compounded by B.C.'s health-care crisis.
"That's a whole different level, and I think it's beyond stressful at this point," he said.
Malhas says he has a doctor provided to him through the military, but his wife and their two sons need to find one.
"It's really concerning, as a parent of young children," said Steph Malhas.
The family says that in Winnipeg, and in other Canadian cities they've lived in, it took no time to find a family doctor.
"We never had this problem elsewhere – and we've been all over the country," said Yaz.
"So I was shocked when we moved here and found out that this was the situation," he said.
'PRESSING PROBLEM'
The family's struggle is one that's shared by hundreds of thousands of British Columbians who are currently without a family doctor.
It's a problem that was recently highlighted by an aging Central Saanich, B.C., couple who resorted to taking out an ad in a newspaper to plead for a family doctor to help fill prescriptions.
On Wednesday, B.C. Premier John Horgan acknowledged that the province's health-care system was under strain.
"It's a real and pressing problem, and we're doing everything we can to address it," he said.
"But it needs to be across the country, not just across the community."
Horgan says he and fellow premiers pressed the prime minister for healthcare funding during a summit in Victoria last month.
He says he's hopeful that urgently needed funding will arrive before the summer is over.
Yaz says even though he wanted to come to B.C., where they have family members, the ordeal has given him second thoughts.
"Maybe we shouldn't have moved here," he told CTV News. "Had I known that we might not be able to find a family doctor."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
London Drugs begins 'gradual reopening' on 7th day after cyberattack
Almost a week after all London Drugs stores across Western Canada abruptly closed amid a cyberattack, they began a "gradual reopening" on Saturday.
Auston Matthews skates ahead of Game 7, status unclear with season on the line
Auston Matthews was back on the ice with his teammates Saturday.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.