Help us advocate for you. Please follow, share and like our content.
Prince Edward County’s physician recruitment efforts are back in the headlines, with reports that “nine new doctors” have come to the County since 2022 and that “1,750 residents” have found a family doctor since January of this year. On the surface, those numbers suggest progress. But when we dig deeper and benchmark against other Eastern Ontario communities, the picture becomes much more complicated.
The County’s messaging has leaned heavily on raw totals without clarifying how many of those physicians represent net new capacity versus simple replacements for retiring or departing doctors. That ambiguity risks misleading residents into believing that the family doctor shortage is being solved when in fact the backlog remains substantial.
Key Takeaways
- PEC reports headline figures (9 recruits, 1,750 attachments) but doesn’t separate replacements from new capacity.
- Quinte West and Belleville show that transparency matters: they track net gains, retirements, and attachment numbers in detail.
- Napanee, with fewer resources, still publishes clear net new numbers, building trust in the process.
- On a per capita basis, PEC’s attachment gains are modest, especially given the scale of need (~4,000 unattached).
What the Numbers Actually Mean
Let’s start with the facts. Prince Edward County’s population sits at around 26,500. Based on Ontario Health data, between 13 and 18 percent of Ontarians are unattached to a family physician at any given time. That translates to between 3,400 and 4,800 people in PEC who lack primary care. The County’s own estimate of 4,000 unattached residents is plausible—if anything, it may be on the low end given the wave of retirements locally.
Since January 2024, the County’s Health Care Connect premium—$25,000 per doctor in exchange for rostering 250 previously unattached patients—has resulted in about 1,750 people being matched with physicians. That is progress, but it needs context. First, these 1,750 patients are not all part of new practices; many are absorbed into expanded rosters of existing doctors, which limits the true increase in capacity. Second, despite those attachments, the Health Care Connect waitlist in PEC remains above 1,000 patients. In other words, for every patient who finds a doctor, another is joining the list, suggesting that the real number of unattached residents is only now coming into focus.
The claim that “nine new doctors” have come to PEC since 2022 is similarly ambiguous. Most of these physicians simply replaced existing doctors. Only two opened brand new practices, and a third is expected to do so by year’s end. The single most concrete new capacity figure is that one of these new recruits is expected to take on 800 patients. That is welcome, but it does not transform the landscape.
Benchmarking Against Neighbours
To understand how PEC is doing, it helps to compare with similar municipalities.
- Quinte West (pop. 45,000): Quinte Health and the municipality have pursued a joint recruitment strategy. In 2023, they attracted five new physicians, three of whom opened practices that together absorbed over 3,000 patients. Quinte West’s waitlist still sits at about 5,000, but the reporting distinguishes between replacement and net-new doctors—something missing in PEC.
- Belleville (pop. 55,000): Belleville has an estimated 7,000 unattached patients, but the city’s physician recruitment task force publishes quarterly data on retirements, new recruits, and total net capacity added. In 2023, Belleville saw a net increase of two family practices, translating to about 1,600 new patient spots.
- Napanee (pop. 16,500): Lennox & Addington County Hospital has worked closely with the Town of Greater Napanee to ensure recruitment ties into system-level needs. In 2023, they added two new practices, with a clear disclosure that these were above and beyond replacements. Their transparency builds public trust.
Physician Recruitment & Access: PEC vs. Neighbouring Communities
| Municipality | Population | Estimated Unattached Residents | 2023–24 New Recruits | Net New Practices | Patients Attached (2023–24) | Reporting Transparency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prince Edward County | ~26,500 | ~4,000 (13–18% of pop.) | 9 (since 2022, mostly replacements) | 2 (3rd expected) | 1,750 attached since Jan 2024 | Reports totals, but not clear on replacements vs. new |
| Quinte West | ~45,000 | ~5,000 | 5 in 2023 | 3 | ~3,000 | Distinguishes between replacement and net new |
| Belleville | ~55,000 | ~7,000 | 6 in 2023 | 2 net new | ~1,600 | Quarterly data on retirements, new recruits, net capacity |
| Napanee | ~16,500 | ~2,000 | 2 in 2023 | 2 net new | ~1,000 | Full disclosure on net new vs. replacement |
By comparison, PEC’s communication strategy blurs those categories. Residents are told that nine doctors have come, but not that most were filling existing chairs. Without clarity on net new capacity, it is difficult to measure true progress.
The Consequences of Ambiguity
Ambiguous reporting carries real risks. Residents who read that “nine new doctors” have arrived may believe that access has dramatically improved. In reality, only about 1,750 patients have been attached since January, and as many as 4,000 still remain unattached. With retirements looming and growth pressures intensifying, the gap may actually be widening.
This is not simply a matter of semantics. A community that believes a problem is being solved may delay pushing for systemic solutions—regional collaboration, expanded nurse practitioner clinics, or innovative models of care delivery. By contrast, communities like Belleville and Napanee have built credibility by publishing hard numbers: how many patients remain unattached, how many are on the formal waitlist, how many doctors were net additions, and how many retirements are coming down the pipeline.
What Has Been Accomplished
To be clear, the County Docs program has produced some measurable results in the past year:
- 1,750 residents have been attached to family doctors, partly through incentives.
- Three recruits have strengthened the emergency department’s physician coverage, an important though indirect improvement to local care.
- Two new practices have opened since 2022, and a third may open before year-end.
- At least 800 patients are expected to be taken off the waitlist by one newly recruited physician.
These are real gains, but they need to be measured against the broader scale of the problem.
A Call for Transparency
The lesson from other Eastern Ontario municipalities is that residents deserve hard facts, not selective framing. PEC Council and the Prince Edward Family Health Team should publish quarterly updates that clearly state:
- The total number of unattached residents.
- How many are on the formal waitlist.
- How many doctors have been recruited.
- How many represent net new capacity versus replacements.
- How many patients have actually been attached since the last update.
Only with this level of transparency can the community truly gauge whether the investments—both financial and political—are paying off.
Conclusion
Physician recruitment in Prince Edward County has produced some progress, but ambiguity in reporting risks overstating the impact. The hard facts are that thousands remain without a doctor, most of the nine recruits were replacements, and the net new capacity is limited. Other municipalities in the region are setting a higher bar for transparency and accountability. PEC residents should demand the same.