Patients lobby to keep P.E.I. doctor's practice(CBC News)

Patients of a prominent Charlottetown doctor who plans to shut down his practice are rallying to try to keep his clinic from closing.

Dr. Robbie Coull announced earlier this month that he will leave the province and close the Phoenix Medical Practice because the province would not fund a pilot project to keep his practice operating. The practice incorporated other health professionals — including a nurse practitioner and a pharmacist — in innovative ways.

His departure will leave 4,500 people without a doctor. The practice employed 14 people.

About a dozen of Coull's patients have formed a group called the Island Health and Patient Advocacy Association. They said they want the provincial government to know they still want the type of care Coull provided.

"It'd be wonderful if he could stay because we've been very happy with the service there, but we understand that's not going to happen," said Denise Bowman.

"The next best option, in my view, is that the clinic remains with his staff and the setup the way it was."

Many of Coull's patients are refugees from Bhutan and Nepal. Madan Kumar Giri, who is their translator, said many of them were deprived of medical care when they were refugees.

"Some people have come from such a place where they stayed in refugee camps for the last 20 years. No medical treatment at all," he told CBC News.

"When they came here, they got Dr. Coull after waiting for years and years. Now Dr. Coull is leaving and now refugee families, basically people who have come from Bhutan, Somalia, Afghanistan — they are feeling very sad."

The patients who have formed the Island Health and Patient Advocacy Association did not know each other before forming the group, but said they're upset and determined to effect change.

"It's just more a matter of thinking that you should do something rather than sit back and wait," said Shawn Bowman.

The patient group said its first order of business is getting as many people as possible to sign a petition demanding the type of collaborative care Coull offered.

They plan to distribute the petition to medical centres and pharmacies across Prince Edward Island and eventually take it to Health Minister Carolyn Bertram.

Coull said he will see patients with appointments scheduled through July and will wrap up his practice by October. He plans to return to his native Scotland.

U.S. urges Bhutan to take tangible steps to address Bhutanese refugee problems

U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration Kelly Clements has urged Bhutan to take tangible immediate steps to resolve the protracted problem of Bhutanese refugees.

During her meeting with Bhutanese government leaders, Clements urged Bhutan to help resolve the two-decade old refugee crisis as a sign of Bhutan’s commitment to democratic values and human rights. Though some 45,000 have already resettled in various eight countries including in the US, several thousand others are still languishing in refugee camps in eastern Nepal after being forcefully evicted from southern Bhutan in 1990.

According to a press statement issued by US Embassy in Kathmandu, the government to Bhutan reiterated its April 2011 offer to the government of Nepal to reengage in bilateral discussions as soon as possible on the modalities for the voluntary return and reintegration of refugees with legitimate citizenship claims to Bhutan. “The government of Bhutan also agreed to examine other ways to resolve this humanitarian situation in a humane and expedient manner, especially for the most vulnerable,” said the statement.

The statement added that Clements stressed that the U.S. government and the international community are ready to help the governments of Bhutan and Nepal to support a process to manage the return and reintegration of refugees once agreements are reached.

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Clements visited Bhutan from June 2 to 5 and Nepal from June 5 to 6 to discuss humanitarian protection and assistance issues for refugees and other vulnerable populations in the region.

While in Nepal, Clements held meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara and expressed the appreciation of the U.S. government to the Nepalese government for cooperation on resettlement and support for efforts to find durable solutions for all refugees in the camps.

Clements also highlighted the appreciation of the U.S. government for the government of Nepal's commitment to ensure the safe transit of new arrivals to India and to respect the basic rights of Tibetans resident in Nepal. She also expressed concern of the U.S. government for the population of stateless persons during the meeting, according to the statement.