Amid Canada’s ongoing family physician shortage, the picturesque city of Colwood, located just west of Victoria, British Columbia, is turning heads with an ingenious solution. This vibrant community, home to approximately 20,000 residents, recently announced the hiring of its first family doctor under a groundbreaking municipal funding model, leading to an astounding influx of inquiries from physicians eager to join the team.

The city's innovative strategy offers family doctors enhanced job benefits, including paid vacations, parental leave, medical benefits, and contributions to a defined pension plan—similar to typical municipal employee perks. Mayor Doug Kobayashi expressed both surprise and excitement at the overwhelming interest, confirming they’ve received over 100 applications from across Canada, the United States, and even the United Kingdom since early November.

"We weren’t expecting this at all. It's a nice problem to have,” Mayor Kobayashi remarked. “We don’t even have enough staff to follow up on these leads!”

At the cutting-edge Colwood Clinic, physicians will collaborate with a dedicated medical office manager and several medical office assistants, significantly reducing the administrative burdens that often lead to doctor burnout and detract from quality patient care.

Cassandra Stiller-Moldovan, a notable family and sport medicine physician from London, Ontario, is set to join the Colwood Clinic in January. The ambitious goal is to recruit seven additional municipal doctors, ultimately connecting 10,000 Colwood residents with a family physician by the clinic's fifth year of operation.

This initiative originated from extensive consultations with local healthcare professionals, paving the way for a supportive environment that attracts qualified physicians. The initiative enjoys backing from prominent political figures, including former Esquimalt-Metchosin MLA Mitzi Dean and former B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix. The program is fueled by the province’s Longitudinal Family Physician Payment Model, rolled out in February 2023, which does not impose ongoing costs on municipal taxpayers.

At the recent Family Medicine Forum in Vancouver, Colwood showcased its unique model and received 115 expressions of interest from attending physicians—before any recruitment advertisements had even been launched. Mayor Kobayashi indicated that media attention surrounding the initiative is likely to increase further interest from potential candidates.

Joss Reimer, President of the Canadian Medical Association (CMA), acknowledged Colwood's model as an exceptional example of addressing critical concerns faced by physicians, highlighting that while clinics employing doctors exist in cities like Winnipeg, such arrangements are still relatively rare across the country. Most family doctors operate as independent contractors, challenging their ability to secure benefits or manage overwhelming administrative demands.

Reimer noted that younger physicians are increasingly disinterested in the traditional practice of running a business, favoring a focus on patient care instead. The municipal funding model not only alleviates paperwork burdens—which can consume 10 to 19 hours a week—but also allows for flexible team-based care, uniting various healthcare professionals in collaborative patient management.

The CMA advocates for expanding team-based care to reduce physician isolation and enhance patient support. With the flexibility offered through municipal employment, cities like Colwood can strategically hire diverse medical professionals, revolutionizing local healthcare.

As Colwood leads the way in innovative solutions to the physician crisis, the healthcare community watches closely to see if this approach can inspire national reforms, potentially redefining doctor-patient relationships and the future of primary care in Canada.