Rediscovering meaning in medicine: a physician’s story
How working at Medcan has helped reignite my passion for care
It’s been six months since I began working in Year-Round Care at Medcan in Collingwood and Muskoka, after 14 years in a major downtown teaching hospital.
I wasn’t sure how I’d find the transition — no residents, no students, and an entirely new set of patients. But I arrived with an open mind and a desire to get back to my roots in medicine: to be in a community where good care is needed and appreciated; to help people across all ages, experiences, and medical challenges; to work as part of a true team; and to experience the best of rural medicine with the support of a strong, established clinical organization behind me.
I made the right choice. Working at Medcan Collingwood meets every one of those hopes — and for the first time in 14 years, I am certain that I’m making a difference. For a while, I wasn’t sure anymore.
So how do I know?
It’s shown to me every day.
It’s in the face of a young child whose lacerated chin I closed without her waiting hours in a crowded emergency department — who left with a brave smile, yogurt in hand, telling me she wants to be a doctor someday.
It’s in the handwritten note from an elderly man with no family doctor, who’d lost weight and was waking nightly drenched in sweat. He thanked us for seeing him quickly, starting his workup, and simply giving him a place to turn.
It’s in the stories of the people I meet: immigrant restaurateurs caring for aging parents, twenty-something snowmakers from Blue Mountain, and local farmers growing grapes for our region’s award-winning wineries.
It’s in the grief shared by an elderly woman who came for a prescription refill but really needed to talk — still mourning the tragic death of her husband as another anniversary approached.
It’s in the trust built with teenagers who are struggling with their mental health.
It’s in the quiet moments when people from every walk of life feel heard, valued, and cared for.
When I leave the clinic at the end of my shifts, I feel like one of the luckiest people on earth. I have a job with purpose. I work in a clinic that supports me because it supports patients so well. I feel reconnected to my community. Every day I receive heartfelt thank-yous. I build trust through relationships and learn from my patients with every encounter. I feel proud of my work — and proud of everyone I work alongside.
Together, we are making a difference.
What an absolute privilege.
- Dr. Darren Larsen
I feel like one of the luckiest people on earth. I work in a clinic that supports me because it supports patients so well.
Dr. Darren Larsen
Dr. Darren Larsen, MD, CCFP, BSc, MPL, is a Year-Round Care physician at Medcan with 35 years of experience in patient care, both in rural Alberta, the suburban GTA, and inner-city Toronto.
Throughout his career, Dr. Larsen has cultivated a broad range of expertise. He is interested in health policy, and health informatics, teaching this subject at the University of Toronto. He is also interested in quality improvement science and the expanding role of digital health. Dr. Larsen’s Post-Nominal Letters include MD, CCFP, BSc (Microbiology), and MPL (Masters Physician Leadership).
Dr. Larsen's philosophy and focus are rooted in patient care, with a strong interest in health system transformation. He is intrigued by the potential of digital health, from EMRs to AI tools for practice improvement and clinical decision support. He has a keen interest in cancer care and emergency/urgent care.
Outside of his professional life, Dr. Larsen is an avid outdoorsman, often found on top of a mountain with his snowboard or in hiking boots. He practices at Medcan's location in Collingwood.