Setting the Record Straight: The Facts About Primrose Medical Centre
As Primrose Medical Centre has taken shape, so have a few rumours. Earlier this year, Dr. Kelly Hadfield sat down with the Parksville Qualicum Beach News to clear up some of the most common misconceptions about the clinic. Here's what you need to know.
Myth: Primrose Medical Centre will be a private, for-profit clinic
Fact: Primrose Medical Centre is a public clinic. Patients will receive care covered by the Medical Services Plan (MSP), just as at any other family practice in BC. The clinic runs on a cost-sharing model: physicians collectively cover overhead costs through a formal agreement, and the clinic itself generates no revenue.
Dr. Hadfield was clear about where she stands: "I would never work at a private clinic."
Myth: The medical director is paid for the role
Fact: The medical director position is unpaid. Because the clinic generates no revenue, it's a volunteer role, the same as at the Qualicum Beach Medical Clinic and the
Qualicum First Nation Medical Walk-In Clinic, where Dr. Hadfield also practises.
Myth: MIHA could just take out a loan to build the clinic
Fact: Because the clinic won't collect revenue, Mid Island Health Alliance can't finance construction with a loan. That's why the project depends on community donations.
What Primrose Medical Centre will offer
Located at 661 Primrose in Qualicum Beach, the clinic is planned with nine exam rooms and will open with four family doctors, a family practice resident and an internal medicine specialist.
Dr. Hadfield is also bringing visiting specialists, such as a geriatrician, to the clinic on a regular basis. These specialist clinics will run in two streams:
Community clinics, open to local patients, with priority given to Qualicum Beach and Qualicum First Nation residents, followed by the most medically complex patients from surrounding areas like Parksville, Errington and French Creek.
Outreach visits, where specialists see their existing patients locally so they don't have to travel.
This model makes it easier for specialists to come to Oceanside, and it helps attract and keep family physicians in our community.
Are donations tax-deductible?
Yes. MIHA is a non-profit but not a registered charity, so donations are held in trust for MIHA by the Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation, which issues tax receipts.
Help Make It Happen
Primrose Medical Centre exists because our community believes in it. If you'd like to be part of building better access to care in Oceanside, please make a donation today.
