Doctors from around the province are gathering in Saint John for the annual meeting of the New Brunswick Medical Society.
Its President Dr. John Whalen of Saint John says recruiting specialists to the province is proving to be difficult because the ones who are here now are overworked by demands for their services. Dr. Whalen would like to see specialists being trained in New Brunswick because, if they are, there’s a better chance they will stay.
He also says the Medical Society is working with the provincial government on achieving better access to a doctor after hours and on weekends through a new model of care involving teams of doctors working together.
Dr. Whalen estimates there are as many as 50 thousand people in the province without a family doctor but is optimistic that number will be drastically reduced in the years ahead. He also would like to see more flexibility from the government when it comes to billing numbers for doctors.
Meanwhile, according to the Canadian Malnutrition Task Force, the recent Nutrition Care in Canadian Hospitals study identified one in two patients admitted into 18 hospitals around the country was malnourished.
