The on-going shortage of family physicians has been one of the top concerns in our community for the last several years. Fortunately, we are now starting to see some significant improvements in primary care access in Kingston, thanks to recent investments from the City, new funding from the province, and a team effort from a network of local health care partners. As an example, the new Midtown Kingston Health Home has just opened here at 791 Princess Street. At this new clinic, a team of 30 different physicians, nurses and other health care professionals will be able to take on a total of 8000 new patients. In the coming months, residents will be rostered from the Health Care Connect waitlist, starting with those living in the surrounding neighbourhood.
Although health care is very much a provincial responsibility, the City decided back in 2022 to launch a new physician recruitment program to help attract more primary care professionals to Kingston and in that time, we’ve been able to attract 17 new family physicians. These new doctors have helped connect over 4000 residents to primary care, while also ensuring continued care for another 11 000 residents whose family physicians have recently retired.
Earlier this year, the City also launched a new expansion grant for primary care clinics – The idea of this grant is to help clinics invest in new technologies and solutions to reduce the administrative load on family physicians. As a result, doctors should have more time to see patients. We’ll soon be announcing grants for six primary care clinics in Kingston, and this will allow these clinics to take on a combined total of 6000-7000 new patients. There’s still lots more work to be done, but it’s encouraging to see how our local efforts are helping more Kingstonians to access the primary care they need.