Sweetening the pot: Patient desperate for family doctor offers $5K finders fee

Less than a month after a Victoria, B.C., woman made headlines with her newspaper ad pleading for a family doctor, another resident in the province has taken a similar step—but this time with a little extra incentive thrown in. Gary Shuster, a 55-year-old dual Canadian-American citizen who lives in Vancouver, recently took out an ad in the Vancouver Sun offering $5000 to anyone who can help him find a family doctor, according to a CBC News report. "Look!" the ad read. "Downtown family doctor needed - $5,000 reward. I have a mutation in my fatty acid oxidation pathway & my family doctor closed his practice. I need a family doctor in downtown Van. I'll pay a single $5,000 reward to anybody who (a) puts me in touch with a doctor who takes me as a patient and who (b) I agree to have as my family doctor." So far two people have responded to the ad, including one who provided a lead on a clinic that may not work for Shuster because it's not located downtown "but as they say, any port in a storm," he said. Both respondents told Shuster they were not interested in the $5,000 reward. Read: 'YAHOO is my answer!' Happy outcome for woman who bought an ad pleading for a doctor for her husband "I think it's terrible that I'm able to do that and others can't,” said Shuster, who had worked in 2008 on Barack Obama’s election campaign, in large part because he believed in a more equitable healthcare system. “It's unfair, and it's not how the system was supposed to be built.” While his recent actions go against his belief in equitable access to healthcare, Shuster said he was forced to take this step because he has carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT) deficiency—a condition that worries him so much he carries around an information card that describes the disease and treatment if he falls ill. His worries intensified after his family physician retired unexpectedly in August, leaving Shuster without a healthcare professional to monitor his condition. So far he has been unable to find another doctor. "It's nearly impossible," he said. "There is for patients who are high risk, like myself, a system that Vancouver Coastal Health runs where they'll help you find a doctor. But the wait times are around six months, and typically they don't guarantee much.” Read: Doctor, how bad is it? Doctors of B.C. president Ramneek Dosanjh called Shuster’s situation and actions “truly sad.” "Nobody should ever have to put an ad in the paper and [offer] money and payment in order to be taken into a family practice,” she said. Shuster would be among the first to agree with Dosanjh, but said he has to think about his family. "I have young kids, and if something were to happen to me, it would really be a disaster for them," he said. "As a responsible parent, I have to take steps to make sure that I stay healthy." Read: B.C. premier says he may copy couple who put out newspaper ad looking for doctor

Sweetening the pot: Patient desperate for family doctor offers $5K finders fee

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