In Canada, annual prescription medication costs over $33 billion and are only second to overall hospital expenditures in health care spending.1 These costs largely reflect the treatment of chronic medical conditions predominantly cared for by family physicians,2 including heart disease and lipid management, hypertension, diabetes and depression.3 The ACFP is pleased to share with you…
Read MoreMy Experience with the ACFP and Reflections on the Pre-Clerkship Years
By Sabrine Garrison, Second Year Medical Student at the University of Alberta, Medical Student Liaison to the ACFP Board of Directors I am halfway through my second year of medical school at the University of Alberta and I can truly say it goes by as fast as everyone says. As a pre-clerk the transition from…
Read MoreConnect Care Launch Wave 3 – February 27, 2021
Connect Care will launch Wave 3 at select sites in the Calgary and North Zones on February 27, 2021. All community providers in Alberta need to take action so that laboratory, diagnostic imaging, and other investigation results and reports are delivered to your office. As you soon as you receive notification from Alberta Health Services…
Read MoreNovember President’s Message – Responding to COVID-19
Read Full eNews As a continuation from last week’s message on the primary health care’s pathway on COVID-19, we have invited back Dr. Adam Vyse with a call to action for family physicians of Alberta. Dr. Vyse’s account of how he and his primary care colleagues are responding to the outbreak reinforces just how impactful the family physician-patient…
Read MoreHappy Holidays From the ACFP!
Read Full eNews To Our Members, On behalf of the ACFP Staff, we wish you all a safe and healthy holiday season! Please enjoy our holiday poem! Warm wishes, The ACFP Staff
Read MoreHeart of Family Medicine Podcasts – New Episodes Added
Listen to the Heart of Family Medicine podcasts where our Executive Director, Terri Potter sits down with your family doctors to chat about their journeys, their passions, their Whys. Get to know what drives them, what their days are like, and the special moments that make it all worth being a family doctor. New podcasts…
Read MoreWave 2 of Connect Care – Launches October 24
Connect Care will launch “Wave 2” at Edmonton suburban sites on October 24, 2020. Community healthcare providers continue to use their existing Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) and other processes to manage patient information that is not part of the AHS record of care. Community practitioners are a huge part of any person’s care team, and it’s…
Read MorePRACTICAL EVIDENCE FOR INFORMED PRACTICE (PEIP) CONFERENCE 2020
The 2020 PEIP Conference highlights focused reviews on clinically relevant primary care topics that combine evidence, experience, and patient values and is free of industry bias. The Conference is a fully accessible via webcast with limited in-person seating. This multidisciplinary event showcases relevant, evidence-based, and thought-provoking topics in health care. REGISTRATION OPENS AUGUST 2020! 2020…
Read MoreConnect Care Re-launch Plan
Connect Care re-launch activities are underway across AHS and planning and implementation will resume as well. Waves 2 and 3 of Connect Care were temporarily delayed in March, given the significantly increased demands on our frontline physicians, staff, and services, and the increased health risks our patients and health care teams faced due to COVID-19….
Read MoreTFP #264 – From theory to reality: ACEi, ARB, and COVID-19
Clinical Question: Do angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB) increase the risk of catching, or severity of infection with, COVID-19? Bottom Line: Despite initial theoretical suggestions that ACEi and ARB are harmful, four observational studies have since found no association between COVID-19 infection or severity of disease and ACEi/ARB. One cohort study with…
Read MoreTFP #263 – Finding COVID – How Good is the Test to Detect it?
Clinical Question: What is the chance of obtaining an incorrect result with the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for COVID-19? Bottom Line: If the PCR COVID-19 test is positive you have COVID-19 (specificity ~100%). Small Canadian studies suggest the test will detect COVID-19 ~80-90% of the time (sensitivity), although estimates range from ~50%-90%. Collection technique, anatomical sample…
Read MorePrevention and Management of Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Primary Care
Toward Optimized Practice (TOP) introduces a new clinical practice guideline (CPG): Prevention and Management of Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Primary Care. By removing lipid targets and associated monitoring of lipid levels, as well as other streamlining measures, the management of lipids and cardiovascular disease risk has been significantly simplified. Additionally, by targeting risk, clinicians can…
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