Tackling the Primary Care Inaccessibility Crisis: How Can We Best Help Family Physicians to do Their Jobs

Endorsed in:

September, 2024

Type de papier:

Exposé de position

Auteurs:

Liam Quartermain
Leon He
Xiu Xia Sherry Tan
Eric St-Amand

Arrière-plan:

Ontario is in a crisis of primary care inaccessibility. Over 2 million Ontario residents do not have a family doctor, and even amongst those enrolled in a family practice, wait times can prohibit access. Simply put: Ontario needs more family physicians. However, minimal attention has been drawn to supporting the family physicians that the province does employ. Family doctors today are reporting incredible overwork and burnout, likely contributing to declining medical student interest in this specialty. Policymakers must therefore prioritize investments into programs and personnel that reduce family physician burden and facilitate the efficient operation of their practices. In this article, the OMSA outlines four recommendations for supporting family medicine practices in this province.

Recommandations :

The Ontario Medical Students Association recommends the following:

That the Ontario Ministry of Health must invest in an assessment of healthcare administrative burden to identify opportunities for streamlining.
That the Ontario Ministry of Health should provide funding for allied primary health practitioners working in physician-led teams.
That OMSA recognizes home care services as vital in primary care, and urges the Ontario Government to continue investment into home care services.
That OMSA recognizes virtual care as an important medium for general practitioners, and will support medical schools in developing telemedicine curricula.