Barbara Latkowski
Caledonia Courier
It was a dream come true.
For childhood friends, Todd Alec and Nathan Teegee it was a long journey but one that they would not have wanted to confront without each other.
From being childhood friends to attending high school together in Prince George, Alec and Teegee shared a passion for medicine and the two knew early on that they wanted to be doctors.
And today after attending medical school together, the two friends are among eight aboriginal medical doctors who recently graduated from the Northern Medical Program at the University of British Columbia delivered in partnership with UNBC.
Dr. Alec, now 29, is from Nak’azdli Band in Fort St. James. He always had a love of math and sciences.
“I thought why not study medicine,” Alec said.
It was also witnessing two local nurses do their job so well that impacted Alec’s decision to becoming a doctor.
“Watching Lisa Sam and Renada Walstrom do their job and seeing the impact they had on the community was overwhelming. I wanted to follow in their footsteps,” Alec said.
Alec is thankful for all of the support he has received from Nak’azdli, his family, wife and young son.
“There were a lot of long nights and lots of sacrifices made. I’m so thankful.”
And for 30-year-old Teegee, who is from Takla Lake Nation, these are sacrifices that he too is very familiar with.
“It is challenging. Medical school in itself is a challenge; the cramming and the testing. We’ve gone through a lot of emotion together but with patience we’ve improved ourselves professionally. We’ve come a long way,” Teegee said.
Teegee is married to his wife Linda and they are expecting their first child in September.
“There’s a lot happening right now, big transitions.”
The two friends will now be parting ways.
Dr. Alec will be pursuing family medicine for another two years in Prince George beginning in July and Dr. Teegee will study dermatology in Vancouver.
Ideally, both doctors have a committed themselves to practising in the North.
“I did an elective in Fort St. James,” Teegee said. “I worked under Dr. Stint. He inspired me to become a doctor. And Dr. Meyer was an inspiration. To see firsthand all that can be possible at home, it was amazing.”
Alec couldn’t agree more.
“First Nations people are facing a lot of barriers in accessing health care today especially in rural communities. That’s why I want to do this so that I can help benefit these communities long term,” Alec said.
“And maybe even practice back home. That would be amazing.”