Martensville city officials are hoping to persuade the provincial Minister of Health to once again allow graduating physicians to complete their residency training in Martensville.
Since 2016, Family Medicine (FM) graduates have been able to complete their Return of Service (ROS) requirements at clinics in Martensville and Warman under contracts approved by the Ministry of Health through Saskdocs.
The 2016 agreement was aimed at recruiting more physicians to the communities, both of which were deemed to be under-served by physicians.
While FM graduates have always been required to complete their training at their site in Saskatoon, Regina, Swift Current, Moose Jaw, North Battleford, Prince Albert or LaRonge; prior to 2016 any of those graduates who held a ROS contract were not able to complete their ROS in Martensville or Warman because those two cities were deemed to be bedroom communities of Saskatoon; and therefore ineligible for the fulfillment of ROS requirements. All bedroom communities of both Saskatoon and Regina are ineligible.
The 2016 agreement, approved by the Ministry of Health, appeared to be a step forward because it specifically recognized both Martensville and Warman were under-served. It therefore allowed FM residents to complete their ROS training in those communities.
However, the 2016 agreement was never implemented in the way that city officials in Martensville and Warman understood it would be. It was only changed for those FM graduates who were completing their residency training for either the Saskatoon or Regina programs – a detail that the original communication did not specify.
In a report to the Martensville City Council Committee of the Whole meeting on Tuesday, June 8, Martensville Economic Development Officer Dillon Shewchuk noted that the physician recruitment issue is back on the table.
“Before 2016 Martensville and other ‘bedroom’ communities were excluded from accessing provincial ‘Return of Service’ residents from practicing in our community,” stated Shewchuk in his report. “In 2016, discussions took place with the Ministry of Health and included Warman in our meetings.
“At that point we believed things were changed and we were able to access these residents as one more means of recruiting.”
But something changed in the meantime, added Shewchuk.
“We learned that we again are being excluded,” he said. “Multiple discussions have taken place with the local MLA about this situation, and messages have been conveyed to the Ministry.
“However, no change is expected or to honour the correspondence that was provided to us in 2016. Our local clinic is leading in this advocacy, and we are determining next steps on this situation.”
Dr. Allison Adamus of the Martensville Collective Health and Wellness clinic in Martensville said the change to the 2016 agreement represents a serious setback.
“We became aware of the change when it came to our attention that there were people trying to come to our communities to complete their residency requirements that were being denied,” said Adamus. “Their ROS contracts excluded Martensville and Warman and other surrounding communities.”
Adamus approached Saskdocs, the organization contracted through the Ministry of Health to administer the ROS contracts.
“I thought it was just a misunderstanding, but it is clear the change was not applied in the way it was communicated it would be,” she said.
The original agreement stated that the list of excluded communities would be removed and instead these residents could serve in any ‘community in need’.
According to a letter from Saskdocs to Dr. Adamus, dated May 4, 2021, the ROS program is reviewed annually and clinic eligibility is determined on a yearly basis by Saskdocs in partnership with the Saskatchewan Health Authority and Ministry of Health.
Adamus said Martensville is still “under-served” and should still be covered by the 2016 agreement.
It is unclear whether the Ministry of Health deems Martensville and Warman to be independent cities or merely bedroom suburbs of Saskatoon.