By: Kathleen De Vere

For three days last week
Prince George was host to an
event of national importance,
the National Health Summit
2001. On Thursday January
18th, in the afternoon, almost
400 people, ranging in pro-
fession from union represen-
tatives, to doctors, nurses,
politicians and educators
gathered at the Civic Center
-to take part in the Summit.
The goal of the summit was
to find solutions for health-
care problems that are faced
by rural and remote commu-
nities across Canada. They
are doing this by bringing
together community based
representatives for discus-
sions, focus groups and
panel sessions in an attempt
to find proactive grassroots
solutions for a health system
in crisis.

Prince George may
seem like an odd choice for a
summit of such national
importance, but for many
people like Roy Stewart, the
chair of the Prince George
Citizenis health group, the
choice is obvious. In his
opening speech to the sum-
mit delegates he talked of the
spontaneous rally that con-
gregated at the Multiplex last
June, where 7,000 people
gathered to support the
regionis doctors in their dis-
pute with the provincial gov-
ernment. It was this event that
caused city council to form
the Prince George Citizen’s
health group, so that desires
of northern residents regard-
ing health care could be
expressed clearly and con-
cisely.

This group formed a task
force, and within 3 weeks, 4
main goals for health care in
Prince George emerged as
the focus of the group. One of
the goals was to turn Prince
George into a center of excel-
lence for issues of health and
health education, to be
achieved in one year. This
goal came one step closer to

PRINCE GEORGE HOSTS NATIONAL

HEALTH SUMMIT

completion when Dr. Jago,
president of UNBC,
addressed the summit dele-
gates at the Civic Center on
Thursday afternoon.

Jago began his speech
by outlining that the problems
that are seen most acutely
here in northern British
Columbia, shortages of fami-
ly practitioners, and trained
specialists, are emerging all
over rural areas of Canada at
an alarming rate. Fewer
physicians are graduating
every year from medical
school, and many of those
that do, turn to major urban
areas to pursue their prac-
tices.

According to Jago, a
northern solution to a north-
ern problem is needed. The
truly northern solution is the
creation of the Northern
Medical Program (NMP), a
partnership between UNBC
and UBC, the goal of which is
to have medical students
right here at UNBC in Prince
George. Each year 15-20
medical students could enter
the NMP and start half their
training in Prince George,
and complete their training in
Vancouver and graduate with
a degree from UBC. The stu-
dents could then return to the
north to do their

residencies at PGRH, in a
newly expanded residency
program. Dr. Barry McBride,
Academic vice-president at
UBC cailed ihe plan “a cost
effective and educationally
effective solution’. The long-
term goal of the plan is too
see doctors begin their train-
ing in northern communities,
and return to finish it there,
and set up their practices in
the communities that trained
them. In the short term under
the expanded residency pro-
gram we can see up to a 50%
increase in residency place-
ments, in every field from
general to internal medicine.

Ed John, speaking on
behalf of Health minister
Corky Evans called the pro-
gram “an investment in the
north,” and spoke of almost

3.5 million dollars the
province will contribute this
year to increasing the UBC

residency program and
workshops to move the NMP
ahead.

Union representative for
the hospital employees union
Kathy Jessome called the
plan “a move in the right
direction, [as] people trained
the community tend to stay in
that community.” However
she explained, “[the plan] is
too concentrated on doctors,
we need to start thinking
about the whole concept of
the medical profession, [as]
Health care only happens
with teamwork.”

She suggested the
implementation of a more
community-based approach
to solving the health care
problems, combining essen-
tial medical services together
and training hospital workers
to work as a team, with each
member team contributing to
the whole. While there is a
shortage of general practi-
tioners in the north, there are
also shortages of OR Nurses,
X ray technicians, and
porters also, the people
essential to contributing to
good overall health care.

The National Health
Summit, which concluded on
January 20th, through panel
discussions and focus groups
attempted to find practical
ways to implement sugges-
tions like Jessome’s so that
rural and isolated communi-
ties could find solutions to
expanding health care prob-
lems. The implementation of
the NMP

through the partnership of
UNBC and UBC is just the
first step in a long series
needed to bring decent
health care to northern com-

munities.

Ur. 6
called the plan “a cost effective and educationally
effective solution”.

Dr. Jago, president of UNBC, addressed the summit del-

egates at the Civic Center on Thursday January18th.

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