Since the new payment model for family doctors has been implemented, Island Health has had the second-highest increase in doctors in B.C.
Vancouver Coastal Health had the highest increase with 211 new doctors now operating in the region, followed by Island Health with 179 new doctors.
This brings Island Health’s total number of family doctors to 954.
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Island Health had the highest increase with a 23 per cent increase, followed by Interior Health and Vancouver Coastal Health with an 18 per cent increase each, Northern Health with a 14 per cent increase, and Fraser Health with a 10 per cent increase.
These numbers come one week after the Ministry of Health marked the one year anniversary since the new payment model was implemented, at which point it revealed 708 new family doctors were working in B.C.
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The BC Community Health Service Area Health Profiles published by the BC Centre for Disease Control shows that every community on Vancouver Island saw an increase in the number of patients connected to general practitioners between 2019 and 2021.
On Vancouver Island, the average number of patients connected to a general practitioner increased from 66 per cent in 2019 to 78.2 per cent in 2021.
Laura Brougham
