An initiative to help Whitehorse residents find a doctor has not been helping Whitehorse residents find doctors.

A call to the phone line set up by the Department of Health and Social Services this morning revealed the answering machine at the number, (867) 393-6980 has not been updated since last Aug. 1.

'Every few weeks, the department will poll medical clinics throughout Whitehorse to determine whether or not physicians are taking new patients,' the phone message stated as of 10:00 this morning.

'This is the update for August 1st. There is currently no physicians taking patients.

'This message will be updated as we receive more information.'

NDP health critic John Edzerza said this morning he is disappointed the phone service appeared to have lapsed because it means citizens were being discouraged with information that may not be accurate.

'I would think that something of that value would be updated almost daily. It has to be updated,' he said.

'Old information, if it's not relevant, is going to discourage people when they call and hear there are no doctors.'

Edzerza said he finds the situation difficult to understand when the government has announced there are a number of new doctors coming to the territory.

In a series of interviews this morning, department spokesperson Pat Living said the phone service had not been updated since last August since there had been no new information to report.

'Since August, there has been nothing to update,' she said.

The phone service, Living said, following initial inquiries from the Star, has been updated today and there is currently one doctor accepting patients.

'Dr. (Gunnar) Tierschmann of the Klondyke Medical Clinic has started accepting patients within the last week,' she said.

Dr. Rao Tadepalli, the president of the Yukon Medical Association, said this morning there will be a number of new doctors accepting patients in January.

Tadepalli said while local physician Anne Williams will be retiring in the new year, two doctors from Germany, one from Vancouver and one from Ottawa will begin practising in Whitehorse.

Living said once the doctors are practising, the phone service will be updated to include that information.