Number of patients on waiting list for family doctor to be posted online, says Health PEI

Health PEI will be posting the number of people on the patient registry on its website in an effort to create transparency with Islanders, said Anita MacKenzieofPrimary Care and Chronic Disease at Health PEI.

"People then can realize exactly the numbers we're dealing with," she said.

About 12,000 people on P.E.I. are on the waiting list for a family doctor, according to Health PEI.

Changing regions

More than 10,000 people have signed onto the registry, hoping for a family doctor over the last two years.

The numbers to be released online will be posted according to counties so patients are able to get a better sense of where the demand is.

After patients are able to see where demand is concentrated, said MacKenzie, people might make a change to the region they originally chose for their family doctor which could possibly spread the numbers out a bit.

Health PEI isin the process of hiring three doctors to replace those who have retired in order to meet the demand, MacKenzie said.

A proposal is also currently being drafted, she said, for a new health building in Charlottetown,butthe project is still a few years away.

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