Sunrise Health Region has welcomed three physicians to its region.
Dr. Morteza Shahrestani will begin practice on February 16 as a general practitioner in Preeceville, said a release from the Health Region. Dr. Shahrestani will be joining Dawn Kennedy, the nurse practitioner, at the Preeceville and District Health Centre.
Dr. Sirous Jafarian began practice on February 1 as a general practitioner in Canora, the release said. Dr. Jafarian is joining the primary health care team at the Canora Health and Wellness Centre in the Canora Hospital.
Dr. Aryo Rohani began practice on January 18 as a general practitioner in Esterhazy, joining the physicians and staff at the Esterhazy Medical Clinic.
“The communities of Preeceville, Canora and Esterhazy are sure to welcome Dr. Shahrestani, Dr. Jafarian, and Dr. Rohani,” said Roberta Wiwcharuk, vice-president of integrated health services for Sunrise Health Region.
“Preeceville has been without a permanent physician since December,” Wiwcharuk said. “Having Dr. Shahrestani join Dawn Kennedy, the nurse practitioner, is welcome news to the community.”
Sunrise Health Region continues to actively recruit for Preeceville and has recruited a fourth physician for Canora, the release said. The physician is currently enrolled in the Saskatchewan International Physician Practice Assessment (SIPPA) and pending successful completion will join the Canora primary health care team in June.
People in communities across Saskatchewan are benefiting from better access to physician services, said a release from the University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine. The new family doctors practicing in Canora, Esterhazy and Preeceville is thanks to the most recent results of the Saskatchewan International Physician Practice Assessment (SIPPA) program.
Dr. Sirous Jafarian in Canora, Dr. Aryo Rohani in Esterhazy and Dr. Morteza Shahrestani in Preeceville join many other International Medical Graduate (IMG) colleagues already practicing in Saskatchewan, the release said. SIPPA is a unique made-in-Saskatchewan program that assesses IMGs on their education and clinical ability before allowing them to practice medicine.
Since the program began in 2011, almost 190 new family physicians have completed the assessment and are currently practicing in the province.
“Internationally trained physicians play a vital role in our health system, and we welcome them and their families to our growing province,” Greg Ottenbreit, minister of Rural and Remote Health, said. “SIPPA is one way we’re making sure Saskatchewan residents continue to have improved access to physician care.”
In addition, a total of 13 new international medical graduates from the January intake are now completing their field assessments. If successful, these family physicians will begin practicing across the province this spring.
“As the province’s only medical school, it is our job to prepare the next generation of family doctors and specialists, and this includes the important assessment work we do with international medical graduates through the SIPPA program,” Dr. Jon Witt, SIPPA medical director for the College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan, said. “Ultimately, our goal is to build capacity in family medicine throughout Saskatchewan and meet the health needs of the province.”
“The physicians, staff and management of Sunrise Health Region are very happy to welcome Dr. Jafarian, Dr. Rohani and Dr. Shahrestani to our health care team,” Dr. Phillip Fourie, Sunrise Health Region vice-president of medical services, said. “Saskdocs and our Sunrise Health Region regional recruitment manager work well together to provide ongoing supply of qualified physicians for our communities.”
“Saskatchewan’s physician supply continues to grow and these SIPPA graduates are no exception,” Dr. Dennis Kendel, saskdocs’ CEO, said. “The physician surveys we do with the Saskatchewan Medical Association show that an increasing number of SIPPA
physicians have no intention of ever leaving the province. This is encouraging as it means more physicians are coming here and more intend to stay and practice alongside their Canadian colleagues.”
In addition to attracting IMGs, Saskatchewan is making progress in keeping more locally-trained family medicine graduates in the province, the release said. The retention rate of family medicine graduates trained at the University of Saskatchewan has jumped by 17 per cent between 2013 and 2015 – from 58 per cent to 75 per cent.
