Article Synopsis
Nanaimo is strengthening healthcare through continuity of care. Longer-term relationships with family doctors reduce hospitalizations, emergency visits, and mortality. The Nanaimo Division of Family Practice and Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation combine recruitment, retention, and community support to expand primary care access, complementing hospital upgrades like the NRGH expansion and building a healthier, more resilient community.
Why Long-Term Doctor Relationships Matter More Than You Think
Healthcare debates usually orbit the biggest, loudest problems. Emergency room backlogs. Surgical waitlists. Budget overruns. The system feels enormous, mechanical, almost abstract.
But alongside the big infrastructure investments, what if one of the most powerful levers is disarmingly small?
In a sprawling system, it is tempting to hunt for a dramatic fix, the mythical silver bullet. Yet a major study from Norway suggests something quieter and far more interesting: longer relationships with a family doctor lead to fewer emergency visits and hospitalizations, and lower mortality.
Healthcare infrastructure includes both the visible upgrades (like the approved expansion of Nanaimo Regional General Hospital) and the human connections that carry care forward.
In Nanaimo, a local organization is treating this human infrastructure as a strategic investment, recognizing that continuity of care strengthens individual health and stabilizes the system as a whole.
Continuity Is Care
The Norwegian study examined how consistent relationships with a family doctor affect patient outcomes, looking at out-of-hours visits, hospital admissions, and mortality. The results are striking: the longer a patient stays with the same general practitioner, the fewer emergency visits and acute hospitalizations they need, and the lower their risk of death. These benefits don’t just appear but compound over time, year after year, showing that continuity itself becomes a powerful form of preventive care.
Enter the NDFP
The Nanaimo Division of Family Practice serves as the anchor for this work locally, coordinating clinics, physicians, and system partners to ensure longitudinal, community-based primary care thrives. By supporting clinicians to stay in practice and helping patients build long-term relationships, the Division strengthens the backbone of Nanaimo’s healthcare ecosystem, working closely with the Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation to expand access, stabilize clinics, and support broader healthcare initiatives across the community.
Target the bottleneck
Complex systems have a peculiar habit. The most visible parts are not always the most influential ones. In a healthcare system, hospitals, operating rooms, and new towers are the high-capacity nodes where the most complex care happens. But the system’s stability often depends on quieter connections that prevent pressure from building in the first place. Family doctors act as those stabilizing links. They hold long-term knowledge of patients, catch problems early, and guide care before conditions escalate. When those relationships are strong, the entire system runs more smoothly. Emergency rooms see fewer avoidable visits, hospitals admit fewer preventable cases, and resources flow where they are needed most.
Nanaimo’s Response
The Nanaimo Division of Family Practice and the Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation have moved from reactive to anticipatory, aligning incentives and supports to make the community an attractive, long-term practice destination. Their approach combines multiple coordinated strategies to recruit and retain family physicians and nurse practitioners:
- Recruitment Bursaries for physicians relocating from out of province or out of country
- Licensing and Certification Fee Assistance to offset regulatory costs
- Immigration Support for legal and visa-related expenses
- Relocation Support covering travel, moving, and initial housing costs
- UBC Graduate Incentives for Family Medicine residents who commit to local practice
- Personalized Recruitment Pathway, including one-on-one needs assessments
- Custom Clinic Matchmaking and Private Tours aligned with preferred practice style
- Dedicated Community Ambassador to help clinicians and families integrate
- Fully Supported Visits to Nanaimo (flights and hotel accommodations for eligible candidates)
- Ongoing Professional Support, including mentorship, practice setup guidance, and access to Division-led quality improvement programs
Clear metrics, including clinicians recruited and patient panels opened, keep the effort focused on measurable impact. According to the Division’s most recent impact report, 12 new family physicians joined Nanaimo last year, attaching nearly 6,000 patients to a regular provider.
Strong Healthcare, Strong Community
Accessible, high-quality primary care does more than improve health outcomes, it transforms healthcare from an expenditure into a strategic investment.
Stable clinics and reduced hospital congestion make Nanaimo more attractive for families, professionals, and businesses, creating a natural advantage for investment. When residents are healthier and workplaces run smoothly, the city itself becomes stronger. Reliable healthcare is more than a service; it’s a cornerstone of a thriving community.
Nanaimo is actively growing its primary care network and supporting clinicians every step of the way. If you know any potential healthcare workers exploring Nanaimo or the Vancouver Island region please connect with the Division’s recruitment team at recruit@nanaimodivision.ca
