Canada has the highest number of family physicians per capita and the lowest access among similar countries, according to a study conducted by the CD Howe Institute. The CD Howe Institute said this lack of access to family physicians is becoming a critical issue in Canada, with millions of Canadians lacking access to a primary care provider. “Addressing primary care access challenges with many interrelated contributing factors is a challenge for policymakers,” said study co-author Tingting Zhang in a Thursday press release. “Canada requires a comprehensive approach that combines strategies to improve access to primary care.”Without changes to the status quo, the CD Howe Institute said the gap between the supply and demand for family physicians is likely to grow. It added many factors contribute to current primary care access challenges. The physician workforce is aging and there are not enough new medical graduates to replace retiring physicians and take on the growing population of patients who do not have access to one. Physicians have been spending fewer hours on direct patient care over time. Unnecessary administrative work requires about 18.5 million hours of physician time every year in Canada — equivalent to 55.6 million patient visits. Economic and cultural factors contribute to medical trainees preferring to specialize instead of opening up general family practices.The CD Howe Institute said it had five strategies for improving primary care access. These strategies were expanding the number of training positions for prospective family doctors and accelerating pathways for international medical graduates to enter family medicine, reducing the administrative burden for family physicians, providing alternate payment models, expanding the scope of practice of other primary care providers, and expanding team-based models of care.Some provinces have taken some steps to improve primary care access, such as Quebec expanding scopes of practice for non-physician healthcare professionals to provide it. Other provinces such as Nova Scotia are implementing more comprehensive strategies to address primary care access challenges. The CD Howe Institute concluded by saying improving access to primary care is a challenge across Canada. It said comparing and contrasting the policies across provinces shows some of them are taking more aggressive actions to improve than others.The Alberta government launched a program to support nurse practitioners to work independently and provide Albertans more access to primary care clinics on April 25. READ MORE: UPDATED: Alberta government launches program to provide Albertans more access to primary care clinicsWhen it comes to primary care, the Alberta government said every Albertan should be able to access it when and where they need it. To help achieve this goal, it will be expanding opportunities for nurse practitioners. “Nurse practitioners are a welcome and integral part of the solution to improving access to primary healthcare services,” said Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.
Canada has the highest number of family physicians per capita and the lowest access among similar countries, according to a study conducted by the CD Howe Institute. The CD Howe Institute said this lack of access to family physicians is becoming a critical issue in Canada, with millions of Canadians lacking access to a primary care provider. “Addressing primary care access challenges with many interrelated contributing factors is a challenge for policymakers,” said study co-author Tingting Zhang in a Thursday press release. “Canada requires a comprehensive approach that combines strategies to improve access to primary care.”Without changes to the status quo, the CD Howe Institute said the gap between the supply and demand for family physicians is likely to grow. It added many factors contribute to current primary care access challenges. The physician workforce is aging and there are not enough new medical graduates to replace retiring physicians and take on the growing population of patients who do not have access to one. Physicians have been spending fewer hours on direct patient care over time. Unnecessary administrative work requires about 18.5 million hours of physician time every year in Canada — equivalent to 55.6 million patient visits. Economic and cultural factors contribute to medical trainees preferring to specialize instead of opening up general family practices.The CD Howe Institute said it had five strategies for improving primary care access. These strategies were expanding the number of training positions for prospective family doctors and accelerating pathways for international medical graduates to enter family medicine, reducing the administrative burden for family physicians, providing alternate payment models, expanding the scope of practice of other primary care providers, and expanding team-based models of care.Some provinces have taken some steps to improve primary care access, such as Quebec expanding scopes of practice for non-physician healthcare professionals to provide it. Other provinces such as Nova Scotia are implementing more comprehensive strategies to address primary care access challenges. The CD Howe Institute concluded by saying improving access to primary care is a challenge across Canada. It said comparing and contrasting the policies across provinces shows some of them are taking more aggressive actions to improve than others.The Alberta government launched a program to support nurse practitioners to work independently and provide Albertans more access to primary care clinics on April 25. READ MORE: UPDATED: Alberta government launches program to provide Albertans more access to primary care clinicsWhen it comes to primary care, the Alberta government said every Albertan should be able to access it when and where they need it. To help achieve this goal, it will be expanding opportunities for nurse practitioners. “Nurse practitioners are a welcome and integral part of the solution to improving access to primary healthcare services,” said Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.
