I ended Part 1 of this series by saying “In the meantime, remember that your public servants are servants of the public – YOU. They need to hear from you.” I continue to hope that you will continue to address the issues with your public servants. The new administration in this Province should be deeply concerned.
In the meantime, let’s talk about the concerns from the perspective of the community. As I stated before, I was shocked by the length of time the average person must wait to get a primary care person (doctor or nurse practitioner), to get basic healthcare services, and to wait in local emergency rooms. Anecdotally, a person can wait 2 years to get a primary care doctor or nurse practitioner. And, if you must visit the Emergency Room, you can be waiting for a full day or more. I know no one is surprised by this, but are we being too passive about this and not speaking loudly enough? Perhaps. According to the NB Medical Society, “Approximately 90,000 New Brunswickers do not have a primary care physician. This number has remained high for several years.” (https://www.nbms.nb.ca/finding-a-family-physician/) This represents about 11% of the population in the province. So, how do we take matters into our own hands? Do we wait, pray, and hope that the healthcare system will address the problems? If this has been ongoing for some time, should we expect that things will change over night?
So, early in 2023, I decided to approach a small team of individuals who lead the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) for the Salisbury, Havelock, Elgin and Petitcodiac (SHEP). I suggested that I would like to see a clinic in Elgin. The Elgin area, now Ward 3 of the Community of Three Rivers Municipality, is rural/sub-rural with 54% of the population, as of the 2021 Census, being over age 50. I knew from hearing from several of the community members that many had little or no access to healthcare. So, having a clinic in this area would benefit a fair number of people. Let me pause here and continue that story in the next issue of Connecting Albert County.