Dear ACFP Members:
The Alberta College of Family Physicians believes that every Albertan deserves to have access to a family physician and a primary care team. To do that, Alberta Health needs to fund the expansion of family practice teams at the point of care including more appropriate funding for family physicians and other members of the team that will incentivize optimal team-based care. We will continue to be steadfast in our advocacy efforts for this and in our support for the Alberta Medical Association’s efforts to build a new compensation model for longitudinal comprehensive care.
The government’s messaging about the new funding model for Alberta’s nurse practitioners (NPs) has resulted in a misunderstanding regarding the value and contribution of family physicians in primary care. We are supportive of complementary team members working to their full practice scopes to optimize care in a medical home or health neighbourhood. The new funding model offers more resources to our destabilized primary care system and the opportunity for Alberta’s nurse practitioners (NPs) to improve timely access to a primary care provider for all Albertans. Please trust that we are working hard to ensure the approach is founded on collaboration and not substitution. In the coming days, we will be sending a letter to both the Premier and Minister of Health reiterating this position.
For more than a month, the ACFP has been working with our partners to inform, consult, and collaborate on the Modernizing Alberta’s Primary Health Care System (MAPS) initiative. We are sitting on the Supporting Comprehensive Primary Care Task Force as announced by Minister Adriana LaGrange on October 18, 2023. The work of the Task Force is to advise and provide recommendations to the Management Committee in accordance with the AMA Agreement on three issues:
- Longitudinal Family Physician Practice Model – as proposed by the AMA
- Strategies to address administrative burden among primary care providers, and
- Other short-term actions to further stabilize primary care
The Task Force has agreed to short deadlines for the deliverables so that the recommendations can inform Alberta Health’s budget and structural changes that are in the works.
Survey on Decreasing Administrative Burden
In collaboration with the Task Force members, we are conducting a survey on Decreasing Administrative Burden in Primary Care. Many of you have responded already however, we would like to get more input to support the discussion on the extent of the issue and the resulting recommendations. Please click here to take the survey.
We will also be holding focus groups and key informant interviews in the next week specifically to talk about Decreasing Administrative Burden in Primary Care. If you are interested in sitting in one of three focus group sessions being held on November 29th, 7-8 a.m., 5-6 p.m. or 7-8 p.m., please send your contact information to info@acfp.ca.
If at any time you want to connect, please email me at acfppres@acfp.ca.
Sincerely,
Noel DaCunha, MBBS, CCFP
President
Alberta College of Family Physicians
So pleased to see a leadership message highlighting the critical importance of publicly funded primary care teams IN THE MEDICAL HOME.
After 20 years of system design favouring a “centralized” model of PCNs, even when a “distributed” model was feasible and superior, we now have an opportunity for reform.
Under a very similar governance model as we have now, each local non-profit corporation (NPC) will be able to allocate panel-based accountable team funding to any member clinic capable and interested in aspiring to the authentic medical home model of care delivery.
We can do this without totally dismantling what exists. With a new public joint venture partner as established by the health system reorganization, local physicians will finally be able to offer a robust team-supported primary care.
While there is risk in the changes being proposed, there is great opportunity.
We must strive to ensure government delivers on public funding for teams. That critical resource, and addressing income equity, can start resuscitation of family medicine and improve access to longitudinal, comprehensive care.
Thanks Allan,
We are at a time where we need to be present and persistent in our leadership and advocacy efforts. We can be successful with the engagement of leaders throughout the health system offering wisdom, evidence, and a collaborative approach to the building of new structures. Leadership for change and organizational effectiveness is needed now so we can make Alberta’s primary health care system the best in the world. We have so much opportunity right now. The question for me now is, “Who will lean in and lead?”
Terri