Patients lobby to keep doctor on P.E.I.

Some of the patients of a doctor who shut down his practice Friday are lobbying the government to keep him on P.E.I.

Dr. Robbie Coull is leaving 4,500 patients without a doctor. He shut down his practice, rather than work within the strictures of P.E.I.'s currentsystem.

Coull had submitted a proposal to the government for a pilot project to operate a practice that integrated other health professionals, such as a pharmacist and a nurse practitioner, in ways that are new to the Island. The government rejected the proposal, saying it was too expensive.

"They're saying that I'm not worth it. That 4,500 people aren't worth it," said patient Lise Brown.

"They're saying that the rest of the Island isn't worth it. They're saying that any other doctor that wants to come in and change the system isn't going to have a chance."

Brown has chronic pain, asthma and several other health problems. She told CBC News Tuesday all of her needs were taken care as a patient in Coull's collaborative practice.

"Everyone had a job, everyone was there to care for you, and it was an incredible environment," she said.

Brown and other patients have started a group to lobby the government to find a way to keep Coull working on the Island.

Coull is still seeing patients for now. He isn't booking new appointments, but he isseeing those already scheduled, and operating a walk-in clinic. He will phase out the practice over the next couple of months.

Coull said many of his patients are asking him why he can't just scale back and operate in the same way others do on P.E.I..

"I just couldn't bring myself to do that. I couldn't sit here and provide poor care for patients knowing that I was able to provide a much better level of care before," said Coull.

"The second thing is that under the fee-for-service system we would have to lose all of our staff which is why we can't provide that level of care."

Minister of Health Carolyn Bertram said Coull made a business decision to close down his practice and now her department is working to fill the gap.

"We're going to relocate patients to current physicians in the province that don't have a full complement right now," said Bertram.

"We're going to be recruiting for a new physician and it's moved up to the number one priority for recruitment."

Coull said his practice could operate as economically as salaried doctors do in the province, but the government disagreed with his accounting.