Four new physicians will be joining the C.W. Wiebe Medical Centre later this year.

Clinic Administrator Jim Neufeld says between summer and into the fall season, they will welcome General Surgeon Doctor Courtney Chernos, Family Physicians Jordan Kroeker and Jordan Banman, and Kyle Conrad who will practice in family medicine anesthesia.

Neufeld says the new doctors are all new to medicine and are currently finishing up their residences. Kroeker is a resident in the local Boundary Trails program, Conrad is finishing an additional year of training in anesthesia, Doctor Chernos is finishing her general surgical training in Winnipeg, and Banman is completing his family medicine residency in British Columbia.

Both Banman and Kroeker both grew up in Winkler.

The four new docs will definitely be a welcome addition, noted Neufeld. "We had a physician leave us this spring, and we've had a couple of other physicians that have taken on other responsibilities, that makes it a little harder for them to take care of all the patients that they've got." He says this will certainly help them to allow patients to access a care provider quicker, and it will allow them to add some more patients to their practice.

In terms of the clinic's patient waiting list, Neufeld says it can be difficult to get an accurate handle on the number of people on that list.

"We do work with the province and the Family Doctor Finder Program, so we have an idea of how many people are (in the immediate area) waiting. We certainly hope to be able to address and offer those people a care provider by the time everyone is here, which would be closer to the end of the year."

Neufeld says the clinic is in a much better position today than they were about five to ten years ago in whittling down the waiting list. He says it's a forever changing target, with the area continually growing, and other dynamics like some doctors slowing down as they get closer to the end of their practice.

Meanwhile, Neufeld says they will be able to accommodate the four new physicians this year within the space they already have.

"We've been very fortunate to work with the Winkler and District Health Care Board to provide space for new physicians here at the clinic. But we know that the demands and needs will continue to grow into the future and we're already working with the Board on what we need to do in the future to keep up with the demand."

The addition of the four new physicians will bring the total number of doctors at the clinic to 43.