COUNCIL AWARD
You have developed a passion for palliative care. What makes this type of medicine unique? Surprisingly, palliative care has the potential for a lot of success. When you are part of a palliative care team, you enter a situation that is often fraught with anxiety and questions about existential matters. The goals of palliative care are different from other areas of medicine as the focus is not on crisis management or saving lives. Instead, the goal is to help normalize the situation for patients and families and walk them through the experience. You can do so much when the goals of care are changed and it can make such a difference to families when you help turn a terrible situation into something manageable.
What are the major barriers to physicians choosing a career in rural medicine? One of the main barriers is visibility – many places just don’ t have the public profile that makes a move to their community intuitive. If not for my wife, who grew up close to Barry’ s Bay, I would not be living here today. I take on as many medical residents as I can in order to get more exposure for my region. Family factors can also present a significant barrier, so when a community is courting a potential new physician, you have to take into account the broader needs of their family, such as schools and social activities. For example, physicians’ spouses are often concerned about the portability of their own careers. We make a point of introducing spouses to local people in similar professions to foster an understanding of living and working in our community.
You are a prolific user of social media as a tool to promote healthy living. How does social media help you connect with your patients? I have a medical practice Facebook page. At first, I used it to announce simple things such as office hours, vacation closures and the like. Then I put up information about the availability of flu shots and it started to snowball into more general health and lifestyle advice. The reception has been good and has led to another level of engagement with my patients and the broader community. I think it’ s important to do what I can to break down barriers between doctors and the public as that can make it easier for them to have uncomfortable discussions with me. Health advocacy, in general, is an important part of my role so I also use traditional media such as radio and community newspapers to talk about health-care issues such as the importance of getting your annual flu shot. I also visit schools to talk with students about mental health, addiction and healthy eating.
What advice do you give to physicians considering a career in rural medicine? When I found Barry’ s Bay, my wife and I spent time getting a feel for the place. Almost instantly, we could picture ourselves living here: working, shopping in the streets and raising a family. And when I met with people in the medical community, I felt a great‘ family’ vibe amongst all of them. So, I tell physicians thinking about a move to rural Ontario to do their research and find a community in which they can fully immerse themselves. If you do that, then the rewards just keep coming back. It’ s worth it to pick the right community – one that you can love and will love you back. MD
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DIALOGUE ISSUE 3, 2018