It’s good news for Lakeridge Health. And it helps with the strain on Lakeridge Health Oshawa.
The organization is committed to keeping the doors to the Bowmanville hospital open, lessening the burden on Oshawa.“Attracting and retaining specialists in Bowmanville has been a challenge for generations of physicians here and won’t be solved with money alone,” says Dr. Benj Fuller, chief of emergency medicine at Lakeridge and a Bowmanville physician.

In the past, rumours have circulated that the Bowmanville hospital may limit its hours or even close its doors at night due to lack of physicians. A roster of at least four specialists is required to allow for reasonable family lives for doctors. The current number of people that are treated at Bowmanville and the staff they have is inadequate, states a release from Lakeridge Health. However, they claim it is continuing to recruit doctors for the hospital.

Along with their recruitment efforts, Lakeridge is also introducing a new type of internal medicine. When specialists are not available in Bowmanville, a Lakeridge Health Oshawa doctor will be linked through two-way video conferencing to the hospital allowing easy consultations.“Until Clarington can support a full roster of specialists, we must consider all possible alternative options that will allow us to treat patients safely and closer to home while avoiding unnecessary transfers, and maintaining our ER and other services as our community grows,” adds Fuller. Lakeridge Health is also considering creating a joint surgical coverage program allowing doctors to be on-call less and reduce the demands on nurses to work overtime.

“Until Clarington can support a full roster of specialists, we must consider all possible alternative options.”

- Dr. Benj Fuller