Fall Advocacy: Northern Engagement, Queen's Park Day & Primary Care Leadership

Dear SGFP Members,

This week, I’m pleased to update you on two significant advocacy events:

1. Engagement face-to-face with members in Northern Ontario

2. Family physician advocacy at Queen's Park Day  

These events provided valuable opportunities to hear from you, our members to elevate the voices of family doctors in Ontario.

I want to comment on the appointment of Dr. Jane Philpott to Ontario's Primary Care Action Team:

• We are thrilled that a family doctor has been appointed.  Dr. Philpott brings the experience needed to transform primary care in Ontario.   SGFP looks forward to being at the table to build the action plan.
• We will be watching closely to ensure this represents a genuine commitment that works for both doctors and patients rather than serving as a tool for politicking. To be successful, this action team must seek direct input from the voices of SGFP, drawing on our firsthand experiences and expertise.
• Family doctors have been clear that we need meaningful solutions to support doctors in delivering comprehensive care to their patients. SGFP will strongly advocate to make sure every person in Ontario is attached to a Family Doctor and their physician-lead teams.

Northern Ontario Engagement: Thunder Bay, Atikokan, Dryden and Marathon

From October 16-20, 2024, our executive team met with members in northern Ontario. After transitioning to a smaller committee earlier this year, we've committed to holding biannual executive meetings in different communities to maintain direct engagement with local members.

Our Northern Visits:

• Thunder Bay town hall for face-to-face member engagement
• Meetings in Atikokan, Dryden, and Marathon

What We Found: A story of resilience and risk. These communities show remarkable creativity in crisis – yet systems are teetering on collapse.

Critical Challenges:

• Provincial Barriers, including restrictive funding models and regulatory obstacles ‍
• Infrastructure Issues, including poor road conditions, unreliable internet and system connection, and disrupted access to lab results and essential services

Key Insight: While we admire local innovation, workarounds shouldn't be necessary for basic care delivery.

Health System Impact:

• Acute crisis is affecting the entire healthcare infrastructure ‍
• Ripple effects include:
• Backed-up emergency departments
• Emergency department closures
• Delayed specialist care

To our colleagues in northern Ontario: thank you for your generous hospitality and for sharing your experiences. Your dedication to providing care despite resource challenges is remarkable.  

To our members across the province: I encourage you to consider the northern context in your advocacy efforts. (See the "Other Resources" section for links on issues facing northern Ontario family doctors.)

Queen's Park Day Advocacy

Twenty-nine family doctors joined us at Queen's Park on October 21st for a crucial opportunity to advocate in person with government officials and politicians to advance their understanding of the challenges facing family medicine in Ontario.  

We highlighted several key priorities:

• The vital importance of developing a comprehensive primary care strategy that works for both patients and doctors
• Real-world examples illustrating the intensity of the crisis in family medicine
• The need to address administrative barriers and reduce bureaucratic complexities that take time away from patient care
• The potential of innovative solutions, including improved technology and centralized referral systems, to enhance the practice of family medicine

Our discussions with government officials focused on solutions and opportunities for change, while with opposition members, we highlighted system challenges. These talks reinforced what we hear from our members: family doctors are committed to excellent care but need better support.

As we move forward, we’ll incorporate insights from both our northern Ontario engagement and Queen’s Park advocacy into our strategic planning.

Warm regards,

Dr. David Barber

Chair, Section on General and Family Practice