Thousands of residents in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows have a family doctor following the opening of a new medical clinic in the community.
The grand opening for the Care Co Medical Clinic, run by Dr. Nageswara Kolla, took place Monday, April 7, with dignitaries including City of Maple Ridge Mayor Dan Ruimy, Coun. Ahmed Yousef, and Treena Innes, executive director of the Ridge Meadows Division of Family Practice, along with her team.
Around 8,000 people do not have a family doctor in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, said Innes, noting that the number does fluctuate because doctors come and go and the community is continuously growing.
The potential for this clinic, she said, is more than 6,000 patients, over the next year or more.
The 4,400 square foot facility is located along Selkirk Avenue, just east of 226 Street.
There are currently four family physicians who work out of the office, in addition to specialist Dr. Tanbir Sindhar, and an onsite pharmacist. And Kolla plans to recruit more family physicians, nurse practitioners and naturopaths.
A physiotherapy and registered massage therapy practice will also have space in the clinic.
Kolla said the Division of Family Practice is successful in recruiting doctors for this community because they engage with physicians.
"(They) help physicians very actively in setting up their offices and their clinics," which is the most crucial part, said Kolla, who was recruited from the United Kingdom in 2020.
When prospective physicians come to the community, the division tours them around the community and then to all the available clinics that are recruiting physicians, explained Sara Antunes, recruitment manager with Ridge Meadows Division of Family Practice.
They recently toured six physicians through. This year, she explained, they have five doctors moving into the community, and last year they recruited 14 physicians.
Currently there are eight clinics, including Care Co, recruiting physicians in the community, added Antunes.
Mayor Dan Ruimy said he is happy to see more doctors coming to Maple Ridge.
“This is an important milestone, and this is a great example of how working together can help meet the growing needs of our community. We look forward to continuing to support initiatives that expand access to primary care for our residents," he said.
Innes added, the clinic will help to alleviate the burden on our existing health care professionals while ensuring improved access to everyone who lives in Ridge Meadows.
There is a huge need for family physicians in the community, she said.
“This clinic will provide our citizens with better access, and help to relieve our doctors at the hospital, walk-in clinics and urgent care. We’re so grateful that physicians are choosing to come to our community because we know how competitive it is out there,” noted Innes.
Kolla noted they have room for 10 physicians to practice at the new clinic and he hopes to attract more physicians to settle in Maple Ridge and British Columbia.
The Divisions of Family Practice are an initiative of the Family Practice Services Committee (FPSC), a partnership of the Doctors of BC and the Ministry of Health (MOH). Divisions across BC support family doctors to work with partners, such as the regional health authorities, local First Nations and community organizations, to address gaps in patient care in a Division’s community.
BC residents who need a family doctor or nurse practitioner can register with the province’s Health Connect Registry at: https://www.healthlinkbc.ca/find-care/health-connect-registry#paragraph-4418 or call 811, which also allows people to register in 130 different languages.
