Number of specialist doctor vacancies in northeast B.C. revealed

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. —  Northern Health has been tackling a healthcare staff shortage for several years, with some job postings in the northeast remaining unfilled for as long as five years. 

On September 2nd, Energeticcity.ca submitted a freedom of information (FOI) request to Northern Health regarding medical specialists in the region and vacancies. 

On November 7th, Energeticcity.ca received a response detailing specialists’ vacancies in northeastern B.C. hospitals and health centres, as well as a list of how many specialists are in practice each year from 2014 to 2024.

Traci de Pape, Northern Health’s regional privacy manager, told Energeticcity.ca no information was able to be provided on where physicians are employed because physician specialists “are not employed by the health authority,” and are instead self-employed, but “may hold privileges at the hospitals.”

‘Holding privileges’ means a qualified physician is able to travel to a hospital to perform specific procedures, even if they are not permanently based there. 

Pape explained general practitioners are employed at the hospitals, but specialists are not, and instead bill their services through ‘mandated service provider’ billing. 

According to the health authority’s response to the FOI, there were eight specialist vacancies in Dawson Creek and Fort St. John as of October 7th, 2025. 

Northern Health provided the number of vacancies that were open as well as how many specialists are needed to fill its assessment of the community’s need:

• Two emergency medicine specialist vacancies out of 6.5 needed in Dawson Creek.
• One psychiatrist vacancy out of three necessary in Dawson Creek.
• The only radiologist position needed in Dawson Creek is vacant.
• Two pediatrician vacancies in Fort St. John out of four needed.
• One obstetrics and gynecology position is vacant out of 3.5 needed in Fort St. John.
• One internist vacant out of four needed in Fort St. John.
• The only anesthesiologist role required in Fort St. John is vacant.

The health authority also detailed when the vacancies were posted as of October 7th, 2025. The newest position posted foccurred on April 2nd, 2025, while the oldest vacancy was the internal medicine position starting on June 16th, 2020. An internal medicine specialist began seeing patients in Fort St. John on October 29th.

Two of the vacancies were posted in 2024, two in 2025, one in 2022, one in 2023 and one in 2020. 

In the decade from 2014 to 2024, the number of specialists based in Fort St. John has increased by two, while the population of the region has increased from 29,504 in 2014 to 30,979 in 2024, according to Statistics Canada.

The data also included ‘current’ statistics, which noted in 2025 14 Northern Health medical specialists were based in Fort St. John, and five were in Dawson Creek for a total of 19. 

Northern Health noted there are no specialists based at the Fort Nelson General Hospital, the Chetwynd General Hospital or the Tumbler Ridge Health Centre. 

Specialists from other nearby facilities travel to those hospitals as needed, and that information is not tracked by Northern Health, according to the health authority. 

Energeticcity.ca‘s FOI request was recieved late – according to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPPA), public bodies must respond no later than 30 days after receiving the request. 

On October 3rd, Pape explained the FOI request submitted by Energeticcity.ca on September 2nd “ended up in the junk mail folder,” and was not addressed until Energeticcity.ca reached back out to follow it up. 

Energeticcity.ca reached out to Northern Health for comment on the data but did not hear back in time for publication.