Long-anticipated Whitehorse walk-in clinic opening on Monday

After years of anticipation, Whitehorse's new walk-in clinic is set to open its doors on Monday, at 9 a.m. 

It will be the first walk-in clinic operating in Yukon since Whitehorse's River Valley Medical Clinic stopped taking walk-in patients in 2021. 

For Yukon NDP Leader Kate White, news of the clinic opening its doors was "like an early Christmas present." The opening of a walk-in clinic in Whitehorse was one of the conditions the Yukon NDP included in a confidence and supply agreement they made with the governing Liberals back in January 2023. White said the clinic was an important part of that deal.

"This has been critical – a piece that's been missing in Yukon healthcare," she said. "So to know that there are going to be fantastic folks welcoming Yukoners here on Monday morning is amazing."

The new walk-in clinic is located at 9010 Quartz Road temporarily, with plans to move it to a permanent location in Mah's Point, closer to downtown, at some time in the new year. Its hours will be Monday to Wednesday, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A news release shared by the Yukon Government said the clinic has been designed to provide same-day treatment for minor illnesses, injuries, and necessary medical procedures, as well as referrals and prescriptions for residents who don't have family doctors.

The clinic will also offer same-day appointments, which can be booked by calling 867-471-0035.

Clinic will improve lives of patients, doctors, says advocate

"It's good to see follow-through," said Yukon Medical Association president Dr. Alex Kmet when asked to comment on the announcement.

"I hope that [the government] is able to deliver on its mandate of improving access for those who don't have a permanent primary care provider."

While the territory has been without a walk-in clinic, Yukoners without a family doctor had no option but to head to the hospital's emergency room for care.  

In his role as president, Kmet has often advocated on behalf of physicians experiencing burnout. He sees reducing the current burden on the hospital as a step in the right direction. 

"That not only improves the experience of the patients who are using the emergency department, but it also makes it more manageable for the physicians working in that department," Kmet said. 

"To see people in an appropriate manner is far more professionally satisfying, and is one of those key things that either nourishes the soul of a doctor or burns them out over time."

Many patients still without family doctors

Greg Penner first spoke to CBC in 2021, when Yukoners first learned they would need to go to the emergency room to receive any kind of medical care. In that story, he expressed concern about the lack of preventative care available in the territory. 

Two years later, in September 2023, he had a "massive" heart attack. 

"You need medical professionals who can follow you over the course of, you know, not only months but years," he said. "Because as I understand it, that's how preventative care works, that's how heart disease is arrested before it becomes a big event." 

Speaking to the CBC this week, he said he is concerned that the clinic is a band-aid solution.

"I'm happy there's a clinic opening, and I hope it actually opens, but I hope they're looking at addressing the underlying issue of all the people stuck on waitlists hoping to see a family doctor." 

Yukon NDP leader White said she agrees that the arrival of the clinic doesn't mean that work to improve healthcare in the territory is done, but she believes it's still a milestone worth recognizing. 

"Ultimately, expanding primary care for Yukoners is important," she said. "And this is another example of that. Instead of sitting in the emergency room next week, people are going to be able to come to a nice little clinic and get to see someone.

"And for that, we're grateful."