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The College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) is urging the federal government to reduce administrative burdens and barriers for family physicians so that they can deliver better patient care.<\/p>\n
During a news conference on Friday, CFPC president Dr. Sarah Cook said every Canadian deserves access to a family doctor.<\/p>\n
“Not just access to any care, not episodic care, not a walk-in when things fall apart,” she said. “But timely, continuous, co-ordinated care with a family doctor who knows them.”<\/p>\n
She also said nearly six million Canadians don’t have access to a family doctor. <\/p>\n
“That is not a marginal issue, it is a design failure,” she said.<\/p>\n
Cook said reducing administrative burdens, increasing digital interoperability and making family medicine more accessible for early-career physicians are three “practical” and “immediate” actions that the government can take to support current doctors and strengthen access to care.<\/p>\n
“The federal government promised nearly half a billion dollars to reduce administrative burden and that commitment needs to be fulfilled,” she said. <\/p>\n
In 2023, the federal government pledged <\/a>$505 million over five years to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), Canada Health Infoway and federal data partners to “improve digital health tools, develop new health data indicators, support the use of data to improve safety and quality of care and support the creation of a centre of excellence on health worker data.”<\/p>\n Cook added that family physicians report spending on average 10 to 19 hours per week on administrative tasks. <\/p>\n “The fastest way to increase access to care in Canada is to give family doctors their time back,” she said.<\/p>\n Cook also said family doctors are “unnecessarily used as gatekeepers” for patients to access the Disability Tax Credit.<\/p>\n