Family medicine gets training boost
Critics say more needed to fix shortage
Up to 8,000 Calgarians will benefit from the expansion of the University of Calgary’s family medicine residency program as it hires 20 teaching doctors to train 70 students.
But in a city where close to 200,000 Calgarians don’t have a family doctor, health critics say the effort is just a tiny drop in the bucket and doesn’t tackle the myriad reasons why most graduating students choose against practising family medicine.
“This is a good start, we always need more family doctors and teaching clinics,” says Dr. Raj Sherman, leader of the Alberta Liberal party and a practising emergency room physician.
“But we need a much more comprehensive approach to the challenge of getting many more family docs.”
With new space created downtown and in the city’s northeast, up to 20 new teaching doctors have been hired to work alongside 70 resident students aiming for a career in family medicine.
Next year, the program hopes to expand to 77 students.
Alberta Health Services says the program is able to accept up to 8,000 new patients.
“Family medicine is the foundation of a healthy healthcare system.
“And if it’s strong, you will see less pressure on emergency rooms, acute care and specialists within the system,” said Dr. Sarah Bates, site director at the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre.
“If we can invest in family care, we invest in preventing crises and save the health-care system a lot of money.”
Just arrived from Edmonton, Bates is one of 20 new teaching doctors in the program, which will divide its space at two Calgary locations.
The Sheldon Chumir centre downtown has just cleared its eighth floor for the family medicine teaching clinic, along with the Sunridge Primary Care Network Clinic on 36th Street N.E. just south of the Peter Lougheed Hospital.
That newly opened clinic is a relocation of a former clinic in the same Sunridge Professional Building, but with an addition of nearly 10,000 more square feet of clinic space.
“This is such an excellent opportunity for Calgarians who don’t have a family doctor or are having trouble getting access to their existing doctor,” said Bates.
“We really want to get the word out and let people know we are happy to take new patients.”
According to Alberta Health Services’ 2010-2015 Health Plan, only 80 per cent of Albertans have a regular family physician, lower than the national average of 84.4 per cent.
Bart Johnson, spokesman for Alberta Health and Wellness, said there are three pilot projects opening new family care clinics around the province, including one in Slave Lake.
Premier Alison Redford has promised 140 new family care clinics in Alberta over the next few years, in addition to the expanded family medicine residency program.
Any Calgarians interested in accessing a new family doctor through the program can call HealthLink.