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A sizeable dent is expected to be made in the battle for the one-third or more of the population in Kamloops which does not currently have a family doctor through a new medical clinic opening up in north Kamloops.
However, don’t wait by the phone for your acceptance call to come in unless you’re able to tick off a couple of critical boxes.
The STEPS non-profit has started taking in patients through a new north shore medical clinic it has opened up on Windsor Avenue, in the building located on the southeast corner of 8th Street and Halston Avenue.
Colin O’Leary, President of the Supporting Team Excellence with Patients Society, says their new clinic is hoping to add around 4,300 patients to its list.
However, O’Leary notes there are a number of specific patient criteria the BC government has mandated the clinic to focus its intake attention toward.
“Specifically, the north shore [location] is going to attach women, children, Indigenous people and two-spirited, transgender and gender-diverse people,” said O’Leary. “On top of that, we’ll be taking other patients in the surrounding region that are currently on the BC Health Connect registry.”
Being accepted by the clinic will require being on the Health Connect Registry — the BC government’s family doctor waitlist program.
It’s estimated there are over 27,000 people in Kamloops on that waitlist.
Location of new STEPS medical clinic in north Kamloops/via Google Street View
O’Leary says the intake is also going to be focused on those who live in north Kamloops.
“This sort of impact, we’re expecting to be very large on the north shore and should immediately provide significant expansion of access for people living over there,” said O’Leary. “It’s expected that the facility will help to facilitate approximately 33,800 patient visits annually.”
However, the nearly 34,000 patient visits aren’t expected to be achieved for at least another year-and-a-half as the clinic moves to become fully operational.
“The projected time for full staffing and operation is a 100% goal by March 31st, 2027,” said O’Leary. “But we’re working towards, right now, a 50% staffing goal by March 31st, 2026.”
While just revealed to the general public this week, the new STEPS Clinic on Windsor Avenue unofficially opened its doors on May 15th.
