The Vancouver Island Regional Recruitment and Retention Working Group was born from a collective will to improve how we welcome and support physicians interested in working on Vancouver Island. We recognized that there was potential for competition between communities, but also that every community on the Island needs physicians, and that each has unique benefits to offer.
Working with all Vancouver Island division executive directors and their recruitment coordinators, we came up with a physician recruitment plan that was based on finding the “best fit” for the physician. Our subsequent strategies and approaches were developed from this best-fit concept. As a group, we recognized that if we can recruit a physician to the Island, ultimately it benefits all Vancouver Island physicians.
I’m pleased to say that our group recently demonstrated the benefits of a collaborative approach to welcoming doctors to our region—we successfully recruited a husband-wife physician team from Ireland, who after touring four Island communities decided to join a Nanaimo-area practice. Their arrival will prevent two sets of retirement-related unattachments in a clinic that was considering closing altogether if those positions had not been filled.
I am so proud of our team for taking this vision from the discussion table and incorporating it into the way that we “do business” in recruiting new doctors to Vancouver Island. The funding support from the GPSC and the commitment from all Island divisions in the early stages enabled us to develop, apply, and outline a strategy that other divisions might now use, and a culture of a collective that will benefit us all in a sustainable way for years to come. This is a true regional Divisions of Family Practice success story.
—Aaron Childs, MD
Physician Lead, Vancouver Island Regional Recruitment and Retention Working Group
Visit the sites below to learn more about the Vancouver Island Regional Recruitment and Retention Working Group.
“One-for-all” approach leads to recruitment success on Vancouver Island
Physician team relocating to Vancouver Island thanks to multi-division collaboration
This posting has not been peer reviewed by the BCMJ Editorial Board.