Family Physician Recruitment Incentive Partnership Pilot Program

Council voted July 26 to approve a new $300,000 capital project for 2023 for a Family Physician Recruitment Incentive Partnership Pilot Program with the Oshawa Clinic Group. The goal of the program is to attract family physicians to the new Whitby Health Centre, opening in spring 2024.

The program will include a $500,000 incentive equally shared between the Town of Whitby and the Oshawa Clinic Group, providing 10 family physicians with an incentive of $50,000 each over a five-year term.

Each physician will be required to work an average of 35 hours per week at the Whitby Health Centre and must have a minimum roster of 400 patients in the first year and 1,000 patients by the third year and maintain this minimum until the end of the five-year term.

The Ontario College of Family Physicians reports that nearly 15 per cent of Ontarians are without access to a regular family physician. Preliminary data for Durham indicates there are about 366 family physicians in the region delivering primary care services, and the average patient roster for a family physician is 1,380. With a regional population of 738,710, it is estimated that there are 230,000 Durham residents without a family doctor practicing in Durham. 

Project budget approval for Whitby Sports Complex

On July 26, Council gave the green light for a revised total project cost estimate and overall budget of $154.9 million for the new Whitby Sports Complex.

The new complex will be located west of Baldwin Street South, south of the intersection of Highway 407.

Planned amenities include an aquatic centre with the largest pool in Durham Region; a double gymnasium, with three-lane indoor walking track; and a twin-pad arena with 85-foot by 190-foot ice pads. Outdoor amenities are set to include a full-sized outdoor artificial turf sports field; pump track; skateboard park; and basketball courts, tennis courts and pickleball courts.

Council also voted July 26 to award the tender for the project to Ledcor Construction Limited, which provided the low bid. The targeted completion date for the Whitby Sports Complex is late 2025.