Dr. Yehiel Meghory 

“I want to become the oldest practising medical professional in Canada.”

Dr. Yehiel Meghory, a family doctor in Bolton, has been practising family medicine for the last 52 years and has no intention to retire – in fact, his plan is just the opposite.  

Originally from Israel, he was inspired to become a doctor as a child while on his walks to elementary school, when he would see people along the road who were unwell and begging for help.  

Now, seven decades later, he is ‘81-years-young’, and provides care for a roster of 2,600 patients with the support of a team that includes his wife, who is also his bookkeeper, two nurses and two administrative staff. In addition to his rostered patients, his team provides care for more than 1,000 unenrolled patients who live as far away as Collingwood, Peterborough and Huntsville. 

Some may question how one doctor has continued to provide care for such a large roster of patients. His wife, Maria says, “He wakes up every morning, puts on his skinny jeans and wonders who is coming to see him. Everyone is family to him and it’s what keeps him going.”  

It’s clear that he’s particularly proud of the care he has provided for families.  

In some cases, he’s delivered the babies, cared for the children as they grow into adults and continued providing care when they start families of their own. Some of the families he cares for span five generations and along the way, he’s attended his patients’ christenings, funerals and other family events. 

Aside from caring for his large roster of patients, Dr. Meghory has also taught medical students, acted as a medical examiner, started the first walk-in clinic in Bolton, and envisioned and helped to create specialized clinics and a rapid access clinic in the region – all substantial contributions to both his patients and the larger medical community.  

But it hasn’t always been easy. Dr. Meghory notes the ever-increasing administrative burden, the growing number of patients with complex medical needs, and compensation that has never seemed to match the work he puts in have posed significant challenges throughout his career. 

Specifically, he notes that his administrative duties are incredibly time-consuming. Even with two administrative staff, he comes home between 8 and 9 p.m. where he continues to do unpaid paperwork until midnight and throughout the weekend. 

The complexity of his patients is what he’s noticed has changed even more. He shares, “In my early days, I’d see 60 to 70 patients a day, which mostly consisted of kids with colds,” says Dr. Meghory. “Now patients are coming in with serious illnesses that take time to assess properly.”  

Instead of retiring, Dr. Meghory takes 10 weeks off per year, spread throughout the year. However, during his time off and no matter where he is travelling, he is still in communication with his office in order to review reports and direct patient care. 

He recognizes that it’s a challenging time in family medicine and is worried that these barriers are what is preventing medical students from choosing family medicine, but he keeps going.   

“I love to provide the service to my patients and my patients enjoy coming.”