Nova Scotia’s family doctor waitlist drops below 96,000
Posted Mar 13, 2025 05:04:12 AM.
Last Updated Mar 13, 2025 10:51:24 AM.
Fewer Nova Scotians are waiting for a family doctor.
Nova Scotia Health says the number of people on the Need a Family Practice Registry has dropped to 95,875 as of March 3, down from 104,324 in mid-February.
The health authority says 8,449 names were removed from the list in February after a validation process confirmed they had a primary care provider.
The latest figures show 9.1 per cent of the province’s population remains on the registry.
The next update is expected in early April.
The health authority noted that the wait list has been decreasing over the last several months — a drop the premier credits to programs aimed at reducing the doctor shortage.
The numbers are now below the summer of 2022 — after the Progressive Conservatives took office — when there were slightly more than 100,000 people seeking to be attached to a doctor or other family care practitioner.
Karen Oldfield, chief executive of Nova Scotia Health, previously said in a news release the organization is “cautiously optimistic” the downward trend will continue in the number of people waiting for doctors.
She credited the drop to ongoing recruitment efforts, including the creation of an assessment centre to help certify foreign-trained doctors more quickly.
