Doctor shortage despite recruitment efforts

Despite around four years of relocation and recruitment drives in the Hamilton area, there are still around forty thousand residents in the area without a family physician.
These numbers are expected to get higher as well over the next few years as a number of physicians will be due to retire.

The average age of the physicians is 53. About ninety of the physicians are between the ages of forty and forty nine, while 30 per cent are between the ages of 50 and 59. And about 79 doctors are 60 years and older.

Since 2005, people working in recruitment jobs have succeeded in bringing in fifty six new doctors, but have only managed to retain nine physicians.

In 2005 Hamilton hired a physician recruitment specialist Jane Walker, who’s primary task was to help convince doctors to relocate to Hamilton. She is expected to be offered a long term contract in the forthcoming weeks.

There are currently around three hundred and forty physicians practicing in Hamilton (as of December last year), with fifteen currently inactive.  The residents are in need of around thirty more doctors to help serve the area.

With the amount of recruitment drives set to increase in the area, keep an eye out for the Recruitment Vacancies that should appear.