Health Minister Terry Lake, and MLA Coralee Oakes  join with other government and  Northern Health  representatives to  announce site for clinic- photo courtesy Northern Health

Quesnel, B.C. –  The new Primary Care Clinic for Quesnel will be on Front Street, right across from GR Baker Hospital.

B.C. Health Minister Terry Lake was on hand for the official announcement saying  the location is  an important step in stabilizing primary care services  in the community. “The interdisciplinary health care team and close proximity to the hospital, means this clinic can provide a strong network of services and supports for patients’ health.”

Quesnel is losing four of its physicians  by the end of 2015, leaving  hundreds of patients without  primary care.

Since the planned departure of physicians  has been  known, the community has been working with Northern Health, the Regional District, physicians and the Provincial Government to  ensure patients’ needs are met.

The site (#644-665 Front Street)  is the former home of  Cariboo North MLA Coralee Oakes’s office.  The current  tenants have agreed to vacate the premises  quickly  allowing Northern Health access to the site for  further planning.

The space will be renovated and  is expected to include examination rooms,  a procedure room, office space for primary care providers and  group/medical consult rooms.

Two part-time physicians who are already established in Quesnel will work out of the clinic once it is operational, along with two nurse practitioners who have recently been recruited to the city. The physicians and nurse practitioners at the primary care clinic will work with an interdisciplinary team, which will include mental health and addiction clinicians, pharmacists, dieticians, registered nurses and home support staff.

Recruiting new physicians to the community has  been a community effort with  the City of Quesnel, Regional District,  Northern Health the Province and physicians working together.

The City of Quesnel is offering additional benefits that will help support physicians and their families as they transition into the community. These benefits include short-term accommodation for physicians and their families, and partnering with a local car dealership to offer each physician a personal vehicle for three months.

As the Quesnel Primary Care Clinic is in development, residents of Quesnel will continue to have access to primary care through their family practitioner and emergency services as required through G.R. Baker Memorial Hospital.

The new Primary Care Clinic is expected to open in  early 2016