Physician Recruitment

Atikokan General Hospital

Atikokan General Hospital is currently serviced by a team of six physicians in a modern and fully-accredited forty-one bed hospital; we currently have two vacancies in rural Family Medicine (Clinical and ER duties).

Locums are always welcome here; frequency of call shifts are variable, depending on locum desires.

Life in Atikokan:

Welcome to Atikokan, Ontario – the Canoeing Capital of Canada and the gateway to Quetico Provincial Park. We are a community of approximately 2800 people located within the Heart of the Continent and surrounded by wilderness and parks; our beautiful forest landscape and plethora of pristine lakes leave no wonder as to why the region is called Sunset Country. Similar to other communities in northwestern Ontario, we have quick access to all of your outdoor recreation needs: fishing, skiing, windsurfing, hunting, snow-machining, mountain biking… summer or winter, there is something to attract every outdoor activity enthusiast! Come discover all that the North has to offer in one of the most welcoming hospitals and communities around.

We’re affordable, well-serviced, and designated as a safe-community by the World Health Organization… Atikokan is a perfect location for families. We offer many annual community events, an entertainment series, and a busy recreation center to ensure you can always find something to your liking. We currently have two public schools (one elementary and one secondary) and one Catholic elementary school. A new K-12 School is in construction that will amalgamate the two public schools and childcare center.

Atikokan has also become a model town for regeneration with our economy developing into one of the most diverse in northwestern Ontario. A growing workforce and unprecedented business succession are leading to new and exciting opportunities every day… Atikokan has diverse employment opportunities with local support for entrepreneurship through the Atikokan Economic Development Office. The main sources of employment in Atikokan currently include the forestry industry, the tourism industry, an Ontario Power Generation plant, and the social services industry. The option to commute to other employers within the Rainy River and Kenora Districts has also proven to be viable by many Atikokan residents working at various mines and sawmills.

Does Atikokan sound like a fit for you?

Practice in Atikokan:

Atikokan General Hospital is a 41-bed fully accredited hospital, with 15 acute care and 26 long-term care beds. We have a well-equipped lab, x-ray facilities, ultrasound and a hospital that is willing to meet new physicians’ needs as well as the needs of the community. We have a modern renovated medical clinic with ten examining rooms and one procedure room.

Practicing as remote generalist physicians, the Atikokan group provide a broad range of skills, supported by remote specialist back up through the Regional Critical Care Response Program. All physicians here administer thrombolytics. Minor surgeries include the usual lumps and bumps removal. Palliative care is a routine aspect of the Atikokan medical practice.

New family physicians can expect that they will be working with proficient mentors who will provide excellent back-up. In Atikokan, we take pride in providing a supportive environment – we have your back.

Atikokan also has a Family Health Team to help facilitate healthcare in the community. Through the team, comprised of physicians, registered nurses, mental health workers/counsellors, a dietitian, and a pharmacist, the Family Health Team is an asset for healthcare in the community of Atikokan.

The physicians in this community strive to find a balance between a rewarding career and time for family life and personal pursuits.

If you are interested in finding out about some of the best rural practice in the country, why not come up and see for yourself.

Remuneration and Incentives:

Becoming a part of the team in Atikokan includes a community sponsored incentive bonus and a provincial Northern and Rural Recruitment and Retention Initiative grant of $114,200 (four-year commitment pro-rated). Physicians are well paid through the Rural & Northern Physicians Group Agreement (RNPGA), which includes locum coverage for vacation. Physicians at our hospital may also receive funding through the Hospital On-Call Coverage Program and the Emergency Department Alternate Funding Agreement.

Teaching Opportunities:

Atikokan is associated with the Northern Ontario School of Medicine University (NOSM U). As a result, teaching opportunities occur on a regular basis. An elective experience or clinical rotation in Atikokan through NOSM U, will expose a learner to many dimensions of Family Medicine. The absence of specialists on-site also provides learners with the advantage of participating in the care of patients from admission to discharge. Working one-on-one with their preceptor, learners have maximum ability to improve their clinical and interpersonal skills in a setting where physicians take the time to discuss cases with their students and residents during and after their consultations.