Government and doctors partner to improve primary care

VANCOUVER – The government of British Columbia and the BC Medical Association are partnering to improve primary care services and ensure all B.C. citizens who want a family doctor are able to access one by 2015.

BCMA president Dr. Shelley Ross joined Health Minister Margaret MacDiarmid in launching a new provincewide program, A GP for Me. This program is based on a successful pilot program that matched patients with doctors. As well, a separate and complementary program is being created to support hospitalized patients in receiving care from family physicians.

“We know that a strong primary care system built around continuous doctor-patient relationships can improve health outcomes for patients,” said MacDiarmid. “This new program will make it easier for physicians to provide high-quality care to their patients, and in many cases ease their workload so that they can accept more patients into their practices.”

Among the features of the new program that will launch on April 1:

Funding to enable family physicians to consult with patients by telephone. Incentives for physicians to take more patients with complex conditions, such as cancer, onto their caseloads. Funding to support local physician groups to work collaboratively with health authorities to support better local access to primary care.

“Moving forward, the resources will be in place for those British Columbians who are looking for a family doctor, to be able to have one,” said Ross. “Because of the great collaborative work between government, the BCMA, and family doctors enhanced access to primary health care will be a reality for many patients and will result in better health outcomes.”

The innovative approach to improving primary care services and finding family physicians for patients was piloted in the communities of Cowichan Valley, Prince George and White Rock-South Surrey. The approach has already matched more than 9,000 patients – who did not previously have GPs – with family doctors.

“Two years ago, there were no doctors in our community accepting new patients,” said Dr. Brenda Hefford, a White Rock family physician who was instrumental in spearheading the program locally. “Now, those without a family doctor can be referred to one immediately. That is radically different than it was at the beginning of 2011.”

In the pilot communities, through the collaborative local efforts, new primary care clinics were opened for patients, more doctors were recruited, and more multi-disciplinary teams were developed, which included nurse practitioners and mental health workers.

“I feel so lucky to have found a family doctor in my community, who also took on me, my husband, two children and even my parents. It has made a tremendous difference to our lives. We have peace of mind knowing that we have a GP near our home who can look after us when we get sick and manage our health for the long term,” says Allison Anderson, a White Rock resident and patient at the Primary Care Access Clinic.

The new programs being launched throughout the province are initiatives of the General Practice Services Committee, which is a partnership between the Ministry and the BCMA.

The programs are supported by $132.4 million in funding. A significant portion of this funding is from the existing physician master agreement negotiated by government and the BC Medical Association in 2012.

For additional information, including frequently asked questions about the program, please visit: www.agpforme.ca

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