Although it was stressed that providing health care services or personnel was absolutely not the responsibility of local councils, Belleville council has approved a formal recruitment policy to attract medical professionals to the city. Below are the highlights
The successful Physician Recruitment Program in place for over a decade has attracted 43 family doctors and specialists over the years and will remain.
- it features $150,000 for a new family doctor to be paid over six years in return for a five-year commitment to work in Belleville
Established Family Physicians
- operates under the principle that the city will not try to lure a doctor away from a current roster of patients.
However, should the physician be looking to move for whatever reason, the city would provide a $75,000 incentive for a full time commitment for five years
Specialists/Emergency Room Physicians
- consult with Quinte Health and Ontario Health about critical needs for specialists and ER doctors
- offer $75,000 incentive in exchange for five years of service
International Medical Graduates
- great opportunity to increase local doctor availability
- once enrolled in good standing with a Canadian Medical School completing residency or observership requirements, would receive $150,000 over six years in return for five years of service
Nurse Practitioners
- any new full time Nurse Practitioner already working in Belleville could receive $10,000 in $5,000 instalments in return for a two-year commitment
Registered Nurses
- Keep the current $10,000 incentive for Loyalist College students who took the third year of the Bachelor of Science Nursing Program to keep them in Belleville after graduation
Recruitment Consultants
- with the competitive market for health care professionals, using “head hunters” is a good option
- A fee of not more than $20,000 could be paid to a consultant who brings a physician to the city
- the money would be paid from the money that would have gone to the physician had the consultant not been required
The city currently has a budget of $605,000 a year for health care recruitment.
