The worker shortage in Canada’s healthcare system has gotten so dire that rural towns are now shelling out NHL draft-level signing bonuses to try and bring in doctors.
Driving the news: Ontario’s Huntsville (population: 21,147) is offering family physicians an $80,000 signing bonus to come work in the community for at least five years, per the CBC.
- Huntsville, like many places across Canada, has a rapidly growing waitlist for family doctors, leaving about a third of residents at risk of not having access to a physician.
Catch-up: Since the pandemic, a “Hunger Games-style” battle for healthcare workers has erupted in more remote parts of the country. Incentives on offer include cash bonuses, student loan forgiveness, free waterfront housing, and even credit at local restaurants.
- Similar programs in rural Saskatchewan, Newfoundland and Labrador, and B.C. offer bonus packages as high as $200,000 to doctors willing to relocate.
Why it matters: Healthcare experts argue that the bidding war puts poorer communities at a disadvantage. Not only are they unable to attract more healthcare workers, but they now face the prospect of losing their own doctors to towns that can offer six-figure bonuses.
Zoom out: The family doctor shortage has already led to fewer Canadians getting early diagnoses for serious conditions. That’s created a domino effect on the healthcare system, flooding already-strained hospitals with more patients in need of urgent care.—LA