The Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) has welcomed nine new resident doctors to the Family Medicine Teaching Unit (FMTU) in Barrie thanks to a unique partnership with the University of Toronto’s department of family and community medicine. Dr. Rumsha Siddiqui is one of the nine new doctors and said the program offers a wide range of jobs that are different than what she would do during her time in medical school. “We are given an extended amount of responsibility compared to medical school and training for practice for when we graduate in two years,” said Dr. Siddiqui. “We have what’s called a horizontal-based program, or our own roster of patients that we see.” Supervisors are watching and listening to residents while they work to review and assess every clinic visit. Residents begin to look after patients on day one of their program. Dr. Melissa Whitty has been the site director of the family residency program at RVH since its inception in 2009. She said the program is designed so residents get hands-on experience of what it would be like for a doctor on a day-to-day basis from the first day. “They’re still looking after their patients, so in that way, we feel like we really provide immediate access to care while we’re training our resident doctors,” said Dr. Whitty. More than 55,000 Simcoe County residents do not have a family doctor, a number that the group is hoping to change. “Family medicine is very comprehensive, and so I think we’ve definitely contributed to primary care in our community, although not quite enough, but we’re contributing to making it better,” said Dr. Whitty. “We have a retention rate of about 60% of the residents that we train here who stay within Simcoe County and provide care to patients.” Since the program opened in 2009, 120 family medicine resident physicians have trained and graduated in the program, a number that continues to increase. “Sometimes the residents come here because they have a connection to our community, and they want to start their career off here,” said Dr. Whitty. “I would say sometimes the residents come and realize how fulsome our medical community is and the training and the supports that we have.” For Dr. Siddiqui, a chance to create a lasting impression on the community “Family physicians can play multiple roles, from obstetrics to newborn baby visits to palliative care,” said Dr. Siddiqui. “And so being able to be a part of that comprehensive care is what draws me to family medicine.” The academic year for the program begins every July, meaning that nine new physicians are graduating from the program every year. Three physicians from last year’s graduating class have begun work in the region.
