The CMHA Cochrane Timiskaming Branch faces a problem common to much of rural and northern Ontario: the recruitment of qualified medical and mental health professionals.

We are actively recruiting qualified professionals to join our team, and we firmly believe that the Cochrane Timiskaming district offers a rich quality of life and opportunities for personal growth.

A profile of Timmins and the Cochrane Timiskaming region:

Timmins is the largest community serviced by the Canadian Mental Health Association, Cochrane Timiskaming Branch, and offers the rich quality of life to be enjoyed throughout northern Ontario, as well as many of the amenities of a larger centre.

Timmins started life as a gold mining community, and is called "The City with a Heart of Gold". It is a regional shopping, recreational, and cultural centre with a local population of over forty-seven thousand people that serves a regional population of almost a hundred and twenty thousand. Timmins also serves as a regional centre for health care and financial services.

Facilities in Timmins include the Timmins Regional Airport, which is one of the largest airports in northeastern Ontario. It is serviced by three airlines, with several flights daily to Toronto, and Ottawa, as well as several smaller centres throughout the north.

The Timmins and District Hospital is a one hundred and sixty-seven bed facility offering a full range of health care services and is one of the largest, most modern and sophisticated hospitals in northeastern Ontario.

Timmins is also a regional business centre, and boasts two major shopping centres, as well as excellent convention facilities at several large hotels and resorts.

Most importantly, the Cochrane Timiskaming district is a good place to live and raise a family. There are excellent opportunities for year-round outdoor recreation, including camping, fishing, hunting, skiing, snowmobiling, and boating. There are several nearby Provincial parks, an eighteen hole and a nine-hole golf course, a ski hill, and a local marina.

Timmins, Kirkalnd Lake, and New Liskeard are linked as part of the largest network of snowmobile trails in the world.

There are excellent educational facilities, including a large number of Catholic, Public and Christian Elementary schools along with one Intermediate Catholic School, two Secondary Catholic Schools and two Secondary Public Schools. There are two community colleges and one regional university. Timmins schools also provide adult and continuing education and special programs for the developmentally challenged.

There are many programs for competitive sports, including soccer, baseball, ringette and hockey, as well as programs for personal development in the areas of gymnastics, martial arts, figure skating and dance.

Timmins is also a cultural centre, and boasts two critically recognized dance schools, as well as a full-time professional orchestra, which offers musical instruction and summer music schools for children. There are three community theatre groups that produce several plays each year and participate in regional drama festivals.

There's even a local film society, which offers cinema lovers a change from mainstream fare with weekly screenings of unique films at the Timmins Cineplex.

As the regional population continues to grow, there are increasing opportunities for medical and mental health professionals. Many people who are new to the north are pleasantly surprised at the amenities and the rich quality of life that can be enjoyed here in Timmins, the "City with a Heart of Gold."

• Click here for a table of Internet resources related to north-Eastern Ontario