Just over twenty-five years ago, New Germany was dealing with a shortage of doctors and decided to do something about it.
And so the New Germany Medical Centre was born.
Greg Selig, a former board member of the medical centre, says the local doctors at the time practiced from their homes and with their impending retirements, residents knew they would need office space or a centre to attract new ones.
“We knew we had to do something and it was just a matter of ‘how do we get the public motivated to do stuff and to donate money?’”
Bricks and plaques for the building were sold as a fundraiser, giving many a sense of ownership over the building.
In less than a year the community raised over $100,000 and a plot of land ready for building.
“We had the building, we had land, we had everything dug, ready to move in so it was quite an auspicious year for a small, rural Nova Scotia village,” says Selig.
The project was completely funded by the community, with no aid from any level of government.
Selig says the lack of government support at the time was frustrating and the board even declined the offer to have politicians present at the opening ceremony.
The centre now houses a doctor and a nurse practitioner and is home to various types of clinics.
Selig says it’s done its job attracting and retaining doctors and he thinks it will for years to come.
And for physicians hesitating on moving to a rural area, Selig, a self-proclaimed “Come From Away” has this to say:
“If a doctor is looking for a place to come where there’s not near as much pressure, you have more than enough community members who are willing to shake your hand and say ‘welcome to the community, what can I do for you to help you get settled?’” says Selig. “So I would say come to a rural area, most every rural area of Nova Scotia is going to be accepting the same way.”
A 25th anniversary celebration gets underway tomorrow at the medical centre from 1 until 4.
A film about the centre has been produced and are being sold at the event.
There will be a free corn boil and entertainment.
To hear the full interview with Selig, tune into South Shore Sunday Morning tomorrow (September 9, 2018)
Story and photo by Brittany Wentzell
Twitter: @BrittWentzell
Email: wentzell.brittany@radioabl.ca
