By Adam Ophus

“It’s not just happening to us"

Staff shortage forcing Rocky Medical Clinic to close its doors this week

Oct 6, 2020 | 3:29 PM

A shortage of doctors is forcing the Rocky Medical Clinic to close its doors later this week.

The clinic announced on Facebook that they will be closed to all foot traffic on Wednesday (Oct. 7) starting at 1 p.m. and all day on Friday.

“We are at a crisis with a shortage of doctors. Unfortunately, for these dates, there weren’t enough doctors available to cover shifts at the clinic as well as the required hospital shifts,” the clinic said in response to a question about why they’ll be closed at those times.

The issue gained attention in July when a leaked AHS email indicated a significant shortage of doctors for “urgent ER coverage” at the Rocky Mountain House Health Centre. AHS officials later said the shortage was due to doctors taking vacation time, not a lack of physicians.

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“There’s a couple of us involved that look after the hospital, and having to recover from overnight shifts and extra-long shifts is where I think we’re going to start to see more gaps and less availability at the clinic and hospital,” says Dr. Edward Aasman with the Rocky Medical Clinic.

The clinic has been actively trying to recruit more physicians after one long-time doctor retired this year and two others closed their family practice. The clinic has also lost two other physicians over the last two years. It was noted that the last family physician recruited and retained by the clinic started working in 2017.

Alberta Health Services has said that due to Rocky’s size and surrounding area that is covered, 18 family physicians and two surgeons would be ideal staffing levels. There are currently 10 physicians in the area.

Dr. Aasman says Rocky has always struggled to recruit new doctors. He said they did have two recruits interested in joining the Rocky Medical Clinic before choosing instead to go to Ontario due to the current climate in Alberta.

Alberta doctors and the provincial government have been locked in a bitter dispute since Health Minister Tyler Shandro tore up their master pay agreement earlier this year to impose changes to billing and compensation.

“It’s not just happening to us, it’s happening across the province,” Aasman lamented over their recruiting troubles. “Right now if any more people retire, we have no way to replace them.”

Aasman said they do have one other recruit joining the Rocky clinic, but from elsewhere in Alberta.

“That’s just somewhere else that will be short on physicians.”

Alberta Health Services released a statement on Wednesday reassuring the community that there are no gaps in physician coverage at the Rocky Mountain House Health Centre.

“All shifts at the hospital are covered at this time with local and locum (temporary) physicians, and we continue to monitor the situation,” said Dr. Jennifer Bestard, Interim Zone Medical Director for AHS Central Zone, adding that Rocky Mountain House is one of the highest priority areas for physician recruitment within the zone.

“Alberta Health Services has been working to recruit several physicians to the area, and we are currently in discussion with five new physicians to secure their arrival for the New Year. “Details around when they will begin to provide care are being finalized with the individual physicians,” she said.

Health Minister Tyler Shandro said in Wednesday’s statement that, “Physician recruitment to Rocky Mountain House is a priority for AHS.”

(NOTE: This story was first published Oct. 6 and updated with comments from AHS on Oct. 7.)