'Everybody's concerned:' Family doctor leaving practice in Three Rivers

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Patients in Three Rivers are wondering where to turn for health care after one of the community’s family doctors announced she is leaving her practice.

Andrew Surrett, who lives in Cornhill, said he received a letter about a month ago from his Dr. Sarah Lespérance, who works out of the Petitcodiac Health Centre, stating she would be leaving her practice at the end of May.

He said his family was “heartbroken” and “disappointed” with the news. His wife and five-year-old daughter were also Lespérance‘s patients. 

“It’s always nice having a family doctor, especially when we have children,” he said, noting his daughter had needed care for ear infections.  “We weren’t very happy.” 

Surrett said he has been a patient of the health centre since he was a baby. Several doctors have come and gone from the centre over the years, but another physician has always come to replace the departing doctor. 

Brunswick News asked Horizon Health Network for an update on the search for Lespérance’s replacement but did not receive a response by press time. 

In the meantime, Surett said he is wondering where to go if he needs medical care. He has registered his family for NB Health Link, the service that has replaced the provincial waiting list for primary care. 

The other options are using a virtual care platform like Maple, or visiting an after-hours clinic or emergency department in Sussex or Moncton. Surett said it is difficult to get into walk-in clinics, and the ERs often have long wait times. 

Surett made a post on his social media urging Three Rivers residents to contact the Department of Health or their local MLA to voice their concerns. 

Three Rivers Mayor Peter Saunders said he has gotten many calls from worried constituents who were patients of Lespérance. 

“Everybody’s concerned,” he said. 

He noted in the municipality there are currently three doctors who work out of the health centre, and one physician who has a solo practice. Both Surrett and Saunders said they understand the doctors all have a heavy patient load.

Saunders said he has asked Horizon about how the recruitment for another family doctor is going, but has only heard the health authority is “actively looking.” 

The population of Three Rivers has grown with the recent local governance reform, and is now around 4,000 people. The municipality includes Petitcodiac, Elgin, and a portion of the local service districts of Elgin Parish, Salisbury and Cardwell.

Saunders said there are a large number of seniors in the community. Those with chronic health conditions would have to make frequent trips to Sussex or Moncton in order to receive care. 

 Surrett and Saunders said they would like to see financial incentives, or a new health centre to attract doctors to Three Rivers. 

In the past, residents have been asking for an updated health centre after a series of water quality issues. 

When asked about a new centre, Saunders said there has been talk of it, but “nothing official.” 

Earlier this week, the federal government signed two bilateral agreements with New Brunswick totaling $430 million. 

One of the agreements was for improvements to the health-care system and among the initiatives were financial incentives for the recruitment of physicians in rural settings and in “underserved communities.” 

Saunders said he would like to see some of the incentives used to recruit physicians in Three Rivers.