Isaac Shouldice, Georgian Bluffs Councillor, left; Cynthia Fletcher, Georgian Bluffs CAO; Sue Carleton, Georgian Bluffs Mayor; Hon. Sylvia Jones, Ontario Deputy Premier and Minister of Health; Dawn Gallagher Murphy, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health; Ian Boddy, Owen Sound Mayor; Scott Greig, Owen Sound Deputy Mayor; Rick Byers, MPP for Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound, right

Rural areas have found it more challenging to attract enough doctors to meet patient needs. Owen Sound continues to look for support to attract and retain family physicians to the area while also leveraging relationships with neighbouring municipalities.

On Tuesday, Jan. 24, Owen Sound and Georgian Bluffs officials requested support from the Province to help attract physicians to our area by accessing existing provincial incentives currently available to other communities.

Mayor Ian Boddy and Deputy Mayor Scott Greig of Owen Sound, along with Mayor Sue Carleton and Councillor Isaac Shouldice of Georgian Bluffs, all met with Hon. Sylvia Jones, Minister of Health and Deputy Premier of Ontario.

The meeting was held during the annual Rural Ontario Municipal Association’s (ROMA) convention in Toronto.

The ROMA Annual General Meeting and Conference is an opportunity for municipalities to discuss critical issues and to engage, learn, network and bring innovative solutions back to the community.

Physician recruitment requires support from more stakeholders than just the municipality, and ROMA provides an ideal platform for Owen Sound to have conversations with Provincial leaders about quality-of-life issues that impact our citizens every day.

source: media release