Code Critical: How a family doctor shortage has N.S. woman hoping her family doesnt get sick [Video]

This is the first installment in a Global News series called Code Critical, which examines the issues impacting the health-care system in Nova Scotia. 

When Brenda MacDonald found out her family doctor was closing her practice back in October 2021, the Halifax-area woman immediately did two things: put herself and her two sons on the province’s family physician waitlist, then held her breath.

Two and a half years later, she and thousands of other Nova Scotians are still waiting.

“You’re always worried. You’re always hoping you don’t get sick,” she said.

MacDonald said she’s particularly anxious because both her children have medical concerns.

Her three-year-old son has a lung disease that kept him in hospital for much of the first year of his life. His disease isn’t always manageable at home, and often results in pneumonia.

“I just pray that my youngest one doesn’t get sick, to tell you the honest truth,” …