Friends of Medicare slams Alberta's delays to physician compensation deal
Friends of Medicare says while Tuesday's announcement of financial support for Alberta's rural health initiatives is welcome news, frustration is continuing to mount over the government's perceived lack of action on its promised physician compensation model.
Health Minister Adriana LaGrange announced Tuesday that $6 million will go to the Rural Recruitment Grant and another $6 million will go to the Municipality Supported Clinic Grant.
"These grants build on our recently announced Rural Health Action Plan to improve rural health care, and are part of our unwavering commitment to address rural health challenges," she said.
Chris Galloway, executive director with Friends of Medicare, says the province is refusing to learn that you "can't recruit your way out of a retention problem."
"We were supposed to have that compensation plan in September, and doctors are leaving our province because that deal hasn't been signed," he said.
"We're not going to recruit people into those communities as we're losing them and stay ahead, so we're missing that piece of the puzzle, and it's the same throughout the healthcare workforce."
Galloway says his team has been calling for a workforce plan for the province for years, and yet plans to retain physicians remain unaddressed.
High River loses family doctor
Bob Black is a 78-year-old resident of High River who recently lost his longtime family doctor, one he had gone to for more than a dozen years.
Dr. Benjamin Andruski is closing his practice in the southern Alberta town this January.
"Arriving at this conclusion has not been easy," Andruski said in a letter to his patients.
"Over the past several months, I've carefully considered many factors both personal and professional. Ultimately, I've concluded that this transition is both necessary and the right thing for myself and my family."
That news isn't sitting well with Black, who has lung and heart problems that need to be attended to on a regular basis
"Now, I have nowhere else to go," said Black.
"I'm beginning to wonder if we're in the right province, or what's happening here. We always have great health care here, and it's scaring me. I lost a brother last year, six years younger than I am, and I know his family kind of believes that it's because they couldn't get the help that they needed on time, so I'm worried that could happen to me."
Black notes that compensation for family physicians is essential considering that the province estimated earlier this year that up to 700,000 Albertans didn't have a family physician.
The Alberta Medical Association (AMA) also cited concerns in a recent September 2024 survey which found that 58 per cent of Alberta physicians are planning to leave their practice by 2029.
AMA President Dr. Shelley Duggan says these statistics are alarming, especially given the trickle-down effect they could have for emergency departments.
"We know that that puts a huge strain on the system, it's also very expensive, so by investing in a physician compensation care model, that also contributes to helping the acute care system, and absolutely, primary care needs to be the foundation," Duggan told CTV News.
"We really need to get this deal done, because we have so many things that we need to work on in healthcare, and this just needs to get done."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Pressure rises on federal government to intervene in Canada Post strike
The business community is ramping up pressure on the federal government to intervene in the ongoing Canada Post strike, which is on its 20th day.
Trump making 'joke' about Canada becoming 51st state is 'reassuring': Ambassador Hillman
Canada's ambassador to the U.S. insists it's a good sign U.S. president-elect Donald Trump feels 'comfortable' joking with Canadian officials, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Mexico president says Canada has a 'very serious' fentanyl problem
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly is not escalating a war of words with Mexico, after the Mexican president criticized Canada's culture and its framing of border issues.
Search extends into the night for Pennsylvania woman who may have fallen into sinkhole
A grandmother looking for her lost cat apparently fell into a sinkhole that had recently opened above an abandoned western Pennsylvania coal mine and rescuers worked late into the night Tuesday to try and find her.
From niche grocer to supermarket giant: How T&T plans to repeat success in the U.S.
Canada's biggest Asian grocery chain is expanding into the U.S., hoping to bring its patented array of food, skin care and more to a new market.
South Korea's opposition parties submit a motion to impeach President Yoon over sudden martial law
South Korea's opposition parties Wednesday submitted a motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over the shocking and short-lived martial law that drew heavily armed troops to encircle parliament before lawmakers climbed walls to re-enter the building and unanimously voted to lift his order.
Freeland says it was 'right choice' for her not to attend Mar-a-Lago dinner with Trump
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says it was 'the right choice' for her not to attend the surprise dinner with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at Mar-a-Lago with U.S. president-elect Donald Trump on Friday night.
A list of mispronounced words provides a retrospective of 2024, from Kamala to Chappell
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and breakout pop star Chappell Roan were among the year's most talked-about people. Their names were also among the most mispronounced.
Quebec doctors who refuse to stay in public system for 5 years face $200K fine per day
Quebec's health minister has tabled a bill that would force new doctors trained in the province to spend the first five years of their careers working in Quebec's public health network.