Agnico Eagle, Alamos Gold, Triple Flag and Franco-Nevada are partnering with Blanche River Health to attract and retain doctors for the communities of Kirkland Lake and Englehart. Blanche River Health said physician shortages have become so severe that the possibility of emergency department closures arises almost weekly. “This initiative will achieve two different objectives. One is to address the shortage here at the hospital, but as well, increase the number of family doctors that will be available to the community,” said André Leite, Agnico’s vice-president for Ontario operations. “In my opinion, the major thing that is affecting our workforce is the lack of family doctors available.” The funding will support physician recruitment incentives, relocation, and housing assistance, as well as initiatives aimed at retaining doctors already working in the region. Helps attract workers “We’re looking at ways that will be meaningful for physicians to support their families, as well,” said Blanche River Health CEO Jorge Vanslyke. “There’s no such thing as black and white when it comes to recruitment. You really want to understand what the general needs are and what the specific needs are, and that’s how you can be successful in recruiting hard-to-recruit physicians.” Blanche River Health said it has recruited five physicians in the past two years and hopes to bring in 10 more over the next five years. For the mining companies, improving access to health care is an important part of attracting workers as they look to expand their operations in the region. “We really think that’s the foundation to be able to also help recruit employees within the district, as well,” said Alamos Gold Inc. chief operating officer Luc Guimond. “If they know they’ve got good health care, they’ve got good schools, good recreation support services within those communities, that’s going to help bring young families and people that want to be in the position.” Agnico Eagle also said there is a strong business case for the provincial government to invest in recruiting and retaining physicians in northeastern Ontario. “When you look at the tax revenue that you can realize from the population here, the tax revenue from these mines, if they are built right? Because we need the workers to build the mines and to maintain them in operation,” said Leite. ‘When you look at that, to me, it’s a great investment to do it." The hospital’s longer-term goal is to build a complement of about 17 physicians to serve the communities within its catchment area, including Kirkland Lake and Englehart.
