How to find a family doctor in Kelowna?

[sit.happens]

How do you find a family doctor in Kelowna. Don't know if that is a stupid question to ask but I'll ask anyway. Getting tired of the walk in clinics, figure there has to be a list of doctors accepting new patients?

[Fancy]

What did your walk-in clinic say?

[CoffeeCanuck]

https://www.cpsbc.ca/cps/physician_directory/search.do

From the above site, here is a list of Family Doctors accepting new patients.

Brown, Jeffrey Kent Kelowna CCFP - Family Medicine
Hancock, Larry Gordon Kelowna CCFP - Family Medicine
Proskiw, Bryan Wayne Kelowna
Segers, Isidor Kelowna CCFP - Family Medicine
Suciu, Valentin Stelian Kelowna CCFP - Family Medicine
Thibault, Nicolas Kelowna CCFP - Family Medicine

From personal experience, unless he has greatly changed, I would not recommend Dr. Proskiw.

~D

Edit to ad...Here is an interesting site to view ratings on Doctors.

http://ratemds.com/social/

[Fancy]

I wasn't meaning to be sarcastic, but the walk-in clinic would have all the data to forward on to an available doctor which I would assume the walk-in clinic would have a list of. That's what I thought anyway.

[Piecemaker]

Kelowna General Hospital and Walk-in clinics have lists of those doctors taking patients. The web-site is often out of date.
Dr. Proskiw no longer does general family medicine. He has specialized in vein and costmetic surgery,etc and is apparently well-respected in that area and charges fair fees.

[CoffeeCanuck]

Kelowna General Hospital and Walk-in clinics have lists of those doctors taking patients. The web-site is often out of date.
Dr. Proskiw no longer does general family medicine. He has specialized in vein and costmetic surgery,etc and is apparently well-respected in that area and charges fair fees.

Now that you say it, you are right, I forgot. Thanks Piecmaker. It's a good thing he got out of family medicine.

~D

[sit.happens]

I never checked at the walk in clinic. My reason for finding a family doctor, at the walk in, you always see a different doctor, so you don't really have someone who knows you and your history. That and it's always so busy, figure with a family doc, you can make an appointment instead of waiting in the first come, first serve walk in lounge.
Thanks for the links, will look into it.

[CoffeeCanuck]

Check that link I gave you. Click on the blue button at the bottom (I have read and accept this disclaimer), then just enter Kelowna, then choose from the drop down menu, CCFP Family Medicine. When I first did it, I chose 'General Practice including CCFP Family Medicine, which is why Dr. Proskiw showed up.

What is nice is from the list of names (which are self reported annually by the physician, and updated by the physician throughout the year), is you click on a name and it tells you if the Doctor is male or female, where and when they received their degree, and their current status. It's nice to know when they received their degree, because if they have been practicing for 30 yrs or so like one Doctor on the list, you can bet they will be retiring soon.

Good luck in your search. At least there seems to be a few Doctors accepting new patients, unlike where I am now living. *sigh*

~D

Edit to ad...Wow, I was looking up different Doctors info and saw one Doctor who has been suspended, and they outline exactly what he was suspended for. Dr Hart, you naughty boy!

[Piecemaker]

Hi to sit.happens--there are some Drs. that work out of walk-in clinics that also accept patients. That is you can make an appointment to see him/her and that way see the same Dr. more often. The only time I guess you wouldn't be able to see him/her is in an emergency when they were not working, which is how it is with regular family doctors as well.
The Walk-in Clinic on Cooper Rd (across from Orchard Park) had at least one such a Dr. (about a year a go). I can not remember his name. I think he had dark hair, was med height, slight to med build and in his 30s...I think his last name started with "L" (or a "M" or a "K"...it was a letter of the alphabet anyway!!!)

P.S. I was there with a young person and focussing on their health needs, not the Dr.!!!! And he was open to taking the youth as a patient because they did not have a doctor, and he was also telling us his expectations of the youth as a patient while he attended to the immediate health need.

[ILLEffect]

Just wanted to give a tip - tell the doctor you'd like 2-3 appointments before considering him/her as a permanent GP. Once you go with one, you're pretty much stuck with him/her forever as it's extremely difficult to go from one doctor to another in Kelowna. Also, ask about hospital privileges, after hours non-emergency policy (most dr's will have an on call Dr that can be paged when they aren't in working hours) and whether they'll also accept your family members.

[Jo]

Just wanted to give a tip - tell the doctor you'd like 2-3 appointments before considering him/her as a permanent GP. Once you go with one, you're pretty much stuck with him/her forever as it's extremely difficult to go from one doctor to another in Kelowna. Also, ask about hospital privileges, after hours non-emergency policy (most dr's will have an on call Dr that can be paged when they aren't in working hours) and whether they'll also accept your family members.

Most will accept your family members, that's almost a given. It is good as well to see if the doctor makes house calls.

A question I've always wanted to ask a potential doctor is, where did he graduate in his class, top of the class or bottom? Who wants the doctor who graduated bottom of his class, after all?

[uwho]

good lord, i called one of the doctors office on the list for taking new patients..

after they went through the information about the clinic<?> it cost 600.00 to join?

what? i was thinking, is this how the medical field is going? wow, blew my mind!!

Any one esle encounter this?

I persoanlly think it is ridiculous!!

[Maliarda]

Walk-in Clinics will have a sign up with the doctor's name and whether they are accepting new patients. Another way is to get a referral from a friend or relative. I think Dr.Hudson at Lakeland Medical Clinic is taking new patients. HTH

[Maliarda]

good lord, i called one of the doctors office on the list for taking new patients..

after they went through the information about the clinic<?> it cost 600.00 to join?

what? i was thinking, is this how the medical field is going? wow, blew my mind!!

Any one esle encounter this?

I persoanlly think it is ridiculous!!

Sounds like a private weight-loss clinic.

[Captain Awesome]

good lord, i called one of the doctors office on the list for taking new patients..

after they went through the information about the clinic<?> it cost 600.00 to join?

I thought GP visits are free to BC residents.