Wow it was one of the good doctors who got killed!
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/red-deer-doctor-killed-walter-reynolds-1.5681955
Doctor killed in Red Deer attack was devout husband, loving father
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Dr. Walter Reynolds was originally from South Africa, friend says
CBC News · Posted: Aug 11, 2020 9:48 AM MT | Last Updated: 15 minutes ago
Walter Reynolds died Monday after being attacked by a patient inside a Red Deer clinic. (Walter Reynolds/Facebook)
A family physician who died Monday after a violent attack at the Red Deer walk-in clinic where he practiced is being remembered as a devout husband and a loving father.
CBC News has identified the victim as Dr. Walter Reynolds.
Reynolds died in hospital after he was assaulted with a weapon at the Village Mall Walk-in Clinic. A witness to the attack told CBC News that a patient armed with a hammer and machete attacked the doctor just before noon inside an examination room.
A man was arrested at the scene and the RCMP's major crimes unit has taken over what police called "an active homicide investigation."
According to an RCMP spokesperson, the accused was charged Tuesday morning.
Supt. Gerald Grobmeier, detachment commander of the Red Deer RCMP, is expected to provide an update on the investigation during a news conference at 12 p.m. Tuesday.
CBC News will livestream the news conference here.
An online fundraiser established for the family described Reynolds as a loving husband and amazing father to two "amazing" young daughters.
"An unimaginable, horrific act of violence took him away from his loving family," reads the GoFundMe page.
"His friends, colleagues and community mourns an exceptional human being lost too soon. We all are devastated and heartbroken."
Reynolds' death has sent shock waves through the Alberta medical community, Red Deer physician Dr. Peter Bouch said in an interview Tuesday.
"It's utter shock and horror," Bouch said.
"Every emotion goes through you, that such a thing could happen to a physician in their clinic while seeing a patient.
"I think all of us today are in the same mindset. Why did this happen and what can we do to try and prevent this in the future?"
Bouch, who has practised in Red Deer for more than two decades, knew Reynolds as a friend and colleague.
They often crossed paths in the central Alberta community's tight-knit community of doctors.
The victim was a young father with an active family.
Both men originally hailed from South Africa. Both shared a passion for medicine.
"He was a family man and an all-around very friendly, great guy," Bouch said.
"He was an excellent doctor. You know, he really cared about his patients. He was a great doctor and a great family man."
Bouch, who serves as a spokesperson for Red Deer Primary Care Network, said the tragedy has created fear in the medical community.
Doctors, already dealing with the pressures of the pandemic, are feeling anxious.
He said he received dozens of calls Monday night from physicians struggling to make sense of the tragedy.
Bouch hopes counselling is made available to those who need it.
"This just adds another layer of stress," he said. "And all of this stress combines to affect every family physician in town here, especially those who were working closely with him.
"I think it's beyond words what they're going through."
Bouch wonders if it will change the way many doctors in the community serve their patients in the future.
All physicians are trained to deal with difficult patients but when they come wielding a weapon, no one can prepare for that, he said. He expects to see clinics adopt more safety protocols.
"I really hope that it would not pull away from the doctor-patient relationship ... but we're going to have to be on guard and a lot more vigilant about the people coming into our clinic.
"It's going to take a while to find the impact that this is going to have on the physician community … it's yet to be seen exactly what that is."