Town of Wasaga Beach Welcomes New Family Doctor

Good news follows on the heels of more than $880,000 in provincial funding for the South Georgian Bay Ontario Health Team that will expand services at the Town’s 160 Beck Street medical centre and after-hours clinic 

WASAGA BEACH - The Town and Council are welcoming a new family doctor to Wasaga Beach today.

The good news is the result of proactive recruitment efforts by the Town, including a recently topped-up $100,000 municipal family physician incentive program and a highly coordinated doctor recruitment strategy that has attracted more than $880,000 in provincial funding through the South Georgian Bay Ontario Health Team (SGBOHT) and Georgian Bay Family Health Team (GBFHT), which will expand services at the Town’s 160 Beck Street medical centre and after-hours clinic.

The Town’s newest family physician, Dr. Jacob Jeffrey McGavin, will begin by taking over an existing family medicine practice in Wasaga Beach. This will ensure that over 750 residents continue to have access to a family doctor.

In late 2024, Doctor McGavin plans to expand his practice to approximately 900 patients, meaning about 150 Wasaga Beach residents who do not currently have a family doctor will now have access to primary care.

Live in Wasaga Beach and need a family doctor? There is no wait-list to join Dr. McGavin's patient roster. Residents who do not currently have a family doctor are encouraged to seek non-urgent care through the Wasaga Beach Medical Clinic at this time. To help ensure local residents who are most in need of a family physician get served first, Dr. McGavin will be connecting directly with the clinic as soon as he is ready to begin accepting new patients and grow his practice.

QUOTES

Mayor Brian Smith

“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. McGavin to our community. This is great news for the citizens of Wasaga Beach – not only will 750 residents continue to have continuous care from a family doctor, but about 150 more will soon have access to a family doctor,” said Mayor Brian Smith. “This is further evidence that our plan is working. Topping up the Town’s $100,000 family physician incentive program to be more in-line with neighboring communities and re-opening the Wasaga Beach Medical Centre and After Hours Clinic was a priority for this Council, and we got it done. Its part of the Town’s larger doctor recruitment strategy, along with our partnerships with regional healthcare partners including the SGBOHT, which has attracted over $880,000 in provincial funding that will expand services at the Town’s 160 Beck Street clinic. We will continue to do what it takes to attract more family doctors and nurse practitioners to Wasaga Beach.”

Dr. Jacob Jeffrey McGavin

“I feel great about establishing roots and providing care in a place that is very connected and proactive. The Town of Wasaga Beach has been supportive of my move and it has been a pleasure to deal with staff at Town Hall. I’m impressed with the actions the municipality is taking, working with other partners in healthcare, including the SGBOHT and GBFHT,  to expand services through the Wasaga Beach Medical Clinic,” said Dr. Jacob Jeffrey McGavin. “Having a state-of-the-art medical centre and after-hours clinic in a small town is as important to me, as a new family physician, as it is to my current and future patients and residents in Wasaga Beach. It means that patients have more options to seek the care they need, when they need it, and achieve better health outcomes. I’m looking forward to becoming a part of the network of family physicians and healthcare partners that are committed to caring for and serving the needs of families in Wasaga Beach.”

QUICK FACTS

• The Town’s community medical centre and after-hours clinic is supporting better health outcomes for Wasaga Beach residents and families.
• With a population of 25,000 set to double by 2051, the Ministry of Health considers Wasaga Beach an area of “high physician need.”
• The Town of Wasaga Beach continues its efforts to attract and retain doctors, family physicians and nurse practitioners by offering financial incentives for family physicians up to $100,000 and offering turn-key, fully staffed and fully equipped medical office space in the Town’s 160 Beck Street clinic.

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