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www.durhamregion.com THE CANADIAN STATESMAN, JANUARY 15, 2003 PAGE 5 Doctor shortage means more and more patients at urgent care clinics 'People are begging the doctor to take them on as family doctor' BY WENDY GALLAGHER Special to This Week DURHAM - A few years ago, a young woman walked into a busy Os- hawa urgent care clinic, and requested to see a doctor. Her ailment? She needed a health form signed so she could enter a beauty beauty pageant. While this is an isolated incident, the demands in urgent care at the Os- hawa Clinic and its sister clinic at the Courtice Health Care Centre continue to climb. Surprisingly, Oshawa, with a population population of 150,000 has fewer visits to its King Street clinic than Courtice, with a population of only 16,000. Last year, 70,000 patients walked through the urgent care doors at the Courtice clinic, compared to 56,000 at the Oshawa Clinic. Oshawa's clinic has 73 doctors, compared to 18 in Courtice. The clinics' Chief Executive Officer, Officer, Harry Horricks, says in the first eight months of opening the Courtice Health Care Centre (April 1999) about 25,000 people visited the urgent care clinic. Within six months, the urgent care centre needed to boost its staff up to two doctors as well as a registered nurse. The concept of an urgent care clinic clinic is to take the workload off hospital emergency departments, he says. The urgent care clinics are meant to treat patients whose family doctor is on vacation vacation or to tend to non life-threatening life-threatening illnesses that need immediate attention. attention. On average, it costs taxpayers $150 each time someone visits the emergency emergency department at the hospital, versus versus $30 for a trip to the urgent care clinic. The urgent care clinics are "a benefit benefit to the health care system," he says. However, with a shortage of doc tors throughout the province, the urgent urgent care clinic has become much more than a place to treat a serious ailment. ailment. Children comprise the largest group of patients at the urgent care clinics. And, with 30,000 people in Durham Region without a family doctor, doctor, urgent care clinics are starting to become a place where people go to get help for common ailments and even for new babies who need their scheduled scheduled immunization shots. "We're seeing a pattern. More and more people don't have family doctors. doctors. They're coming to the urgent care clinics for treatment," says Mr. Horricks. Horricks. A common concern among doctors who do shifts at the urgent care clinics is that "people are begging the doctor to lake them on as a family doctor," lie says. Not all patients visiting the clinics are happy, either. Complaints from patients patients can include not getting the prescription prescription they want. Mr. Horricks explains a viral infection infection cannot be treated by an antibiotic. Some people become upset when they are refused such a prescription. Also, "there's always in society, an element" of people who want the doctor at urgent urgent care to prescribe a narcotic drug, a practice forbidden in the urgent care clinics, as doctors are not aware of the medical history of the patient. And, if you try to phone either clinic clinic to see what doctor is working urgent care that day, save your dime. Clinic policy forbids doctors' names from being given out. Doctors at both the Courtice Health Centre and Oshawa Clinic man the urgent urgent care centres on a volunteer basis. Mr. Horricks says the doctors volunteer volunteer for duty for a couple of reasons. "It's a different type of practice," he says. "The family practice consists of ■ annual check-ups and dealing with multiple concerns for the same patient. patient. There's a faster pace in urgent care," he says, something most doctors look forward to during their rotation, which is usually weekly. About 95 per cent of the clinics' doctors participate in the urgent care service, lie,says. There's no doubt the financial fac tor is another consideration in a doctor doing urgent care duty. Doctors bill the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OH1P) between $17 and $30 per patient patient visit, depending on how much investigation investigation the doctor must do to assess assess the patient. A doctor can see many more patients in an urgent care setting than during family practice hours. With doctors in Durham Region having an average patient caseload of 2,500 people, many visits are lengthy where patients want to discuss a variety variety of illnesses or receive counselling. Currently, a patient at the urgent care clinic can expect to wait up to an hour to see a doctor, says Mr. Horricks. Horricks. However, at peak times, especially especially the Christmas season where flus are prevalent, waits can be more than two hours. Mondays are particularly busy at the clinics because people tend to monitor their children's illnesses over a weekend, and if symptoms haven't improved, take them in to be checked after the weekend. However, the number number of patients seeking help "is very unpredictable" on any given day, he says. There is some discussion about bringing a third physician into the clinics during particularly busy seasons, seasons, he says. Now that the Courtice Clinic is taking taking 70,000 patients, including those from Bowmanville, east Oshawa, Newcastle and Orono, Mr. Horricks says "it's hard to predict," what would have happened to the local health care system if the clinic hadn't opened. "We wouldn't be able to cope with it here," he says of the Oshawa Clinic. "The emergency departments are already already overwhelmed." If you're thinking about visiting an urgent care clinic, think carefully about the seriousness of your illness, advises Mr. Horricks. If you've had a condition and lived with it comfortably comfortably for a period of time (such as a pain in your foot) try to make an appointment appointment with your family doctor (if you have one) and save the urgent care clinic for those requiring more immediate immediate assistance. Take advantage of Spelling Bee for The Alpha course an opportunity to explore the meaning of life volunteer hours DURHAM - Time is running out to get your high school volunteer volunteer hours. Metroland Publishing's Durham division division is gearing up for its 2003 Durham Regional Regional Spelling Bee and is looking looking for a few good students from Oshawa, Whitby and Clarington to lend a hand. This is the fourth year Metroland has run the bee and hundreds of students students have racked up volunteer volunteer hours necessary necessary in getting their high school diplomas. Volunteers will be working with younger students during coaching sessions sessions in March and assisting in many facets during during bee competitions competitions in April. This is a perfect fit for students who are outgoing outgoing and love working with kids. If you are interested interested in volunteering, volunteering, or lor more information, information, call managing managing editor Chris Movie at 905- 579-4400 ext. 2244 or regional editor Jiuli Mob- hilt at 905-579- 4400 ext. 2248. Looking for answers? The alpha course is an opportunity for anyone to explore the Christian faith in a relaxed, non-threatening manner over ten, thought-provoking weekly sessions. ' It's low key, friendly and fun. And it's supported by all the main Christian denominations. You're not on your own either. 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