Pending Doctor departures signal more Health care challenges ahead for Prince Rupert residents

Prince Rupert's Large Clinic will be down two physicians
at the end of this month as a pair of popular doctors
embark on relocation plans for the south 

Prince Rupert's loss, will once again be Nanaimo's gain ...  as two more physicians on the North Coast make plans for a shift in practice to the largest community on Central Vancouver Island.

Word of the relocation plans for Dr. Sunelle Fawell and Dr. John Fawell were relayed this week through the Northern Health Prince Rupert focused Facebook page, with one of their patients noting of the change ahead for the Large Clinic.

The follow up comments a testimony to the level of care that the two physicians provided in the community during their time on the North Coast.

The departure of the two popular physicians who called Prince Rupert home for more than a decade, makes for the latest of medical professionals to launch the journey to the Island to further their careers in the last few years.

As they take their leave at the end of the month, that will leave the Large Clinic with three remaining General Practitioners for the moment; with the Northern Health Authority engaged in an ongoing quest to fill available space, as can be found through the pages of Health Match BC.

That online recruitment tool currently hosts three General Practitioner openings in the community, along with three other physician positions.

The reduced level of physicians, in addition to adding to the current shortage in the community, could also deliver some impacts on services through the hospital in the short term as Northern Health looks to rebuild the roster of medical practitioners in Prince Rupert.

Prince Rupert City Councillor Barry Cunningham
seen at left from this image from July, has been seeking to
kick start his plan for a Health Advisory Committee in Prince Rupert

The topic of physician recruitment could make for another key conversation point for the proposed Prince Rupert Health Advisory Committee, a community initiative that Councillor Barry Cunningham has been trying to get to the finish line at City Council for a few years now.

When we last left that discussion in late August, Mayor Lee Brain had turned to City Staff for an update on the situation.

However, since that August session, not much new has been heard as to whether the Health Advisory Committee plans are moving forward, or remain on the long running to do list.

Mr. Cunningham resumed his quest to develop the Advisory Committee in March of this year, a project he first brought up for consideration back in 2019.

More notes related to Northern Health themes can be explored here.