\n[\/et_pb_fullwidth_header][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_margin=”0px||0px|” custom_padding=”0px||0px|” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_fullwidth_header _builder_version=”4.16″ content_font_size=”13px” background_color=”rgba(255, 255, 255, 0)” background_layout=”light” custom_margin=”0px||0px|” custom_padding=”0px||0px|” global_colors_info=”{}” button_one_text_size__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_text_size__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_text_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_text_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_border_width__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_border_width__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_border_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_border_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_border_radius__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_border_radius__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_letter_spacing__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_letter_spacing__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_bg_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_bg_color__hover_enabled=”off”]Meyronne, Sask. doesn’t have the same services it once did. Photo by Matthew Olson<\/em>.
\n[\/et_pb_fullwidth_header][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”0px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”]The people who live in isolated communities around Saskatchewan might be staying put for nostalgia or a sense of responsibility, but they could be risking their own health by doing so.<\/p>\n
Saskatchewan has a history of being unable to draw doctors to rural communities. It\u2019s a trend seen Canada-wide: a report published in 2005<\/a> by the Canadian Institute for Health Information indicates that less than 16 per cent of family doctors lived in rural areas, as defined by Statistics Canada.<\/p>\n The numbers are worse for specialized doctors, with only 2.4 per cent of specialists located in rural areas.<\/p>\n \u201cI think Saskatchewan faces a unique challenge,\u201d health-care policy consultant Steven Lewis said. \u201cOur rural areas don\u2019t have very big towns. And as the demographics have shown for decades, most of them are dying.\u201d
\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_margin=”0px|||” custom_padding=”0px|||” global_colors_info=”{}” column_structure=”2_3,1_3″][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”]The doctor deficit in Saskatchewan has not gone unnoticed by the government. The provincial government created the Physician Recruitment Agency of Saskatchewan, also called Saskdocs<\/a>, to \u201chelp find the right physician for the right community.\u201d The agency helps set up doctors in urban and rural areas in the province, but its biggest benefit is helping connect trained physicians with job openings in rural areas.<\/p>\n
