Sparwood council has decided to rescind its health care professionals incentive/retention program.
The policy was created in 2002 and was managed by the Public Relations Committee.
“The financial policy incentives include a Family Active Living Pass at the Leisure Centre for three years, a three-year Sparwood Golf Course family pass, a three-year Fernie Alpine Resort family pass a one-time grant of up to $5,000 for accommodation expenses,” said corporate services manager Megan Rawles.
The Public Relations Committee dissolved in 2021 and the policy was put on the district’s shoulders.
Staff were not aware of the policy and had not been setting aside money in the budget for it.
Mayor David Wilks says the program was a product of its time.
“We were struggling at the time because our hospital had just closed at the direction of the government of the day,” he said.
“We lost all of our acute care beds, we retained our emergency room but lost our operating room. We are not going to see those things back.”
He believes Sparwood is in a place where it doesn’t need the current program.
In my humble opinion, we should rescind the policy. It had its usefulness, but I don’t believe it has its usefulness anymore,” Wilks added.
“It had some desired effect but it wasn’t everything we thought it would be.”
Since 2002, Wilks says the program was used to bring in three doctors.
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