Health Minister Terry Lake has announced a 5 million dollar endowment to fund a new chair of Rural Health.
The position is part of UBC’s Department of Family Practice but will be based in Prince George, available as a resource to the Northern Medical Program.
In fact, the program’s first leader – Dr. Dave Snadden – has been named to the position, which will focus on recruiting and retaining doctors and establishing research programs into rural issues.
“My top priority is actually to listen to the rural doctors to see how I can best help and support them, to create new knowledge through research and also to begin to make sure that current research knowledge is available to people.The real research questions are the ones that rural doctors face every day and so there would be my priorities: to hear what they have to say and to see if we can find ways to help them.”
The position is being funded through a $5 million endowment from the Joint Standing Committee on Rural Issues – a partnership between the Ministry of Health and Doctors of BC. It will also receive $350,000 in operational funding for each of the next 5 years.
Snadden says he’s keen to figure out what makes doctors want to come and work in rural communities.
“My personal interest over the years has been around training and recruitment and retention. What I’m interested in right now is what is the best kind of practice environment that is going to attract the coming generation of physicians.”
The Rural Health chair initiative is the first of its kind in the country, possibly even the world.
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