Life on Gabriola Island can be idyllic, providing residents with a tight-knit sense of community and a feeling of peace and seclusion from the outside world. However, until recently, that seclusion was impacting residents’ ability to access health care—residents had no access to care between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. due to ferry schedules and a lack of emergency care facilities on the island.
A shortage of office space had also impacted the availability of care. Two local physicians—Drs Francois Bosman and Tracey Thorne—were practising out of a converted storefront with no room to accommodate potential new physician recruits. To address their need for more space, the two doctors became part of the community effort to build the Gabriola Community Health Centre.
Read the full story on the Divisions of Family Practice website.