Nearly a quarter of Canadians don’t have a family doctor and close to 40 percent of family doctors are expected to retire in the next 10 years. We are coming to understand that there will never be enough family doctors to meet the needs of our growing population. A new BC Medical Journal article explains why team-based primary care is a key solution to our health human resource shortage and central to building a thriving and sustainable future for our healthcare system.
Canadians want a relationship with a primary care provider who works in a team with other health professionals. That’s one of the key findings of the OurCare initiative, a national public conversation about the future of primary care in Canada. OurCare participants said that an integral part of the solution to our lack of access to family doctors is to expand team-based primary care, both to increase capacity in the system and to address physician burnout.
Making team-based care a reality requires innovative system supports, including:
- specific primary care training for nurses, pharmacists, social workers and other providers to be fully functional in family practices
- physician compensation models that incentive shared care
- a reduction of administrative burdens to free up time for patient care
By committing to expanding team-based care and building shared care structures, we can create a more sustainable and high-quality health care system for British Columbians.