The District of Invermere has earmarked up to $10,000 to help shore up the region’s medical staff through a local recruitment campaign.
The initiative, spearheaded by the Columbia Valley Chamber of Commerce (CVCOC), seeks to fill employment gaps in the region’s healthcare sector.
“Healthcare staffing is definitely an issue in many communities, so we’re certainly not alone in that regard,” said Pete Bourke, CVCOC executive director.
“We want to try to give our residents the best family and general practitioners available. By keeping our brand and the name of our region at the forefront in various areas, we’ll hopefully be able to sustain that level of service and care.”
The initiative has been in the works for a few years, backed by the Regional District of East Kootenay and Columbia Valley communities.
Bourke said they hope to step up their recruitment efforts this year.
“Our focus this year is primarily to attend two big conferences: one is a provincial conference in Whistler in May and one that’s coming up this week in Edmonton, which is the Society of Rural Practitioners of Canada,” said Bourke. “It’s about getting out there, talking to people and making sure they’re aware of us.”
Bourke part of those conversations involves ensuring any potential recruit is a good fit for the region.
“What we need here in the Columbia Valley may not be what everyone is looking for in a healthcare job,” said Bourke. “We have different needs in terms of our emergency department, that may not be the same as other areas, for example.”
The Chamber hopes to recruit three more doctors.
“We have two full-time roles and we’re looking for a long-term locum at the moment,” said Bourke. “We have our goals this year to try attacking those positions and bring them into the community in the next 12 to 24 months.”
So far, Bourke said the program has brought in a full-time doctor and two long-stay locum practitioners.
“They can often relieve one, two or three doctors in any given stay. It allows us to give those permanent doctors a bit of a break,” said Bourke.