For people living in rural and remote parts of Canada, getting primary care often means travelling hours — or going without.
When millions of Canadians don’t have a family doctor, we need every tool we can find to expand access.
And so, as we continue our tour of innovative clinics in Canada, our newest episode of Primary Focus is zoning in on one possible solution to bridge a gap caused by a shortage of family doctors in rural areas of our country.
Convincing doctors to move to the incredibly beautiful, but also more remote parts of Canada can be a real challenge. In smaller centres, the arrival of a new doctor is front page news, but these community announcements can sometimes be few and far between.
What if… instead of waiting years to recruit new family doctors to move to a rural area, you could connect local patients to physicians working virtually — but still supported by an in-person team nearby?
That’s exactly what’s happening in Renfrew County, Ontario — and it’s giving more than 6,000 people something they didn’t have before: a family doctor.
Think – a hybrid model, but built for rural realities.
In this episode, I travel to Petawawa Centennial Family Health Centre — a small-town clinic that’s part of an ambitious effort to solve a big problem: how to provide full-service, ongoing primary care in a region where there simply aren’t enough doctors.
Dr. Jonathan Fitzsimon and Executive Director Judy Hill brought me into their clinic to help me understand their approach that combines family doctors working remotely — many in Toronto — with an in-person health team that includes nurses, pharmacists, social workers, and more. Together, they deliver hybrid care that’s accessible, team-based, and continuous.
Here’s a quick sneak peek:
As Jonathan tells me, their model seeks to redistribute resources more equitably – addressing what’s known as the inverse care law, the idea that the people and places with the greatest health needs often have the fewest resources.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
🩺 What it’s like to have a doctor you’ve never met in person.
👩⚕️ How this flexible model lets off-site doctors balance the need for flexibility with meaningful rural work.
💊 How this clinic’s on-site team is helping patients understand and trust this new “way of doctoring”.
📊 Why Dr. Fitzsimon, who’s leading research to evaluate the impact of hybrid care, says the results are really promising.
This model doesn’t replace traditional care — it extends it, tapping into physicians across Ontario while keeping the care team rooted locally. It’s publicly funded, it’s team-based and it’s helping thousands of people who used to have no care at all finally get connected.
And before you go, here are some photos of my visit last winter to Renfrew County:
If you’re enjoying Primary Focus, give us a follow on your favourite podcast app, share the episode, and help spread the word. And if you know of an innovative clinic we should feature, email us at primary.focus@unityhealth.to.
With gratitude,
Tara
