October 24, 2023
RED DEER – Local and area residents now have improved access to palliative care services with the arrival of a newly recruited physician.
Dr. Stephen Yam is now practicing out of the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre, where he serves as palliative care consultant and medical lead for palliative and end-of-life care in the Central Zone of Alberta Health Services (AHS).
“Our government is committed to providing high-quality healthcare support for all Albertans, across every stage of life, including end-of-life care,” says Adriana LaGrange, Minister of Health and MLA for Red Deer-North. “Dr. Yam’s recruitment will significantly benefit local residents and their loved ones when they need palliative and end-of-life care.”
“Red Deer is the third largest city in the best province in Canada,” adds Jason Stephan, MLA for Red Deer-South. “Red Deer has many competitive advantages which make it an attractive place to live, work and raise a family. It is good to see medical professionals coming to Red Deer to serve families and individuals in our wonderful community.”
Dr. Yam completed his Doctor of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan and his family medicine residency through the University of Alberta in Fort McMurray, where he provided palliative home care to the community and helped run the Fort McMurray Community Cancer Centre. He joins a multidisciplinary team that provides palliative care consultative support for adult patients, families, and healthcare teams to help manage complex palliative symptoms related to a patient’s life-limiting disease.
“I went to high school in Red Deer at Notre Dame, and many of my family and friends still live here, so this is a return home,” says Dr. Yam. “I'm very grateful for the opportunity to provide palliative care to the citizens of Red Deer and the Central Zone.”
AHS continues to recruit for physicians across the Central Zone to meet community needs. AHS has physician resource planners who are dedicated to identifying and pursuing international and domestic physician recruitment opportunities. They work closely with various community partners and organizations, such as local Health Advisory Councils, the Rural Health Professions Action Plan, and independent physician recruitment and retention committees.
Alberta Health Services is the provincial health authority responsible for planning and delivering health supports and services for more than four million adults and children living in Alberta. Our mission is to provide a patient-focused, quality health system that is accessible and sustainable for all Albertans. Our current focus is on reducing emergency department wait-times, improving EMS response times, increasing access to surgeries, and improving patient flow.
