Family medicine/northern medical services involvement in northern Saskatchewan

To address the problems of recruitment and retention of family physicians in various remote locations in northern Saskatchewan, the University of Saskatchewan became involved through Northern Medical Services, a division of the Department of Family Medicine. The University's involvement consists of the provision of resident family-physician services, visiting consultant services, family-practise resident training, research, and a consulting role of the Medical Health Officer. This paper reviews the context in which this program was created, its role in health care in the area, and its involvement with the communities in health promotion and research.