A 2010 government promise to “provide every British Columbian who wants a family doctor with one by 2015” appears unlikely to be met.
“I think it’s unlikely that we will be able to fulfill that completely in 2015, but I can tell from the work that’s going on that we’ve made great progress,” said Health Minister Terry Lake at the legislature earlier this week.
The government made their commitment under a new initiative, “A GP for Me”, that would use technology and greater coordination between doctors and the government to provide personal care for all British Columbians.
In February, the President of Doctors of BC said that setting up the program was taking longer than expected.
“It’s an awful lot more complex than we thought. There’s been a substantive period of time that the divisions have had to spend taking a look at their communities…that preparatory work has taken some time,” said Dr. Bill Cavers.
READ MORE: 350,000 British Columbians don’t have a family doctor
Today in the legislature, the NDP attacked the government on the issue.
“Was the Premier’s promise in the last election that every British Columbian would have a family doctor by 2015 just another one of those promises made in order to get elected?,” asked health critic Judy Darcy in question period.
But the premier defended setting such an “ambitious goal”.
“There are many parts of that program that have worked, but I will say this: We certainly set a goal in the ‘GP for Me’ program for connecting a doctor to every single patient. We still intend to get there, although we aren’t getting there yet,” said Premier Christy Clark.
“I will say something, though, further, which is that the thing about setting goals — the thing about setting ambitious goals — means that you’ll be able to achieve things. You’ll be able to make sure that you make a difference.”
The NDP brought up multiple examples in northern B.C. where medical resources are currently lacking. In Chetwynd, all four of the doctors are planning to leave this summer. And in Fort St. James, an unplanned leave by the only emergency room physician means people will need to go to Vanderhoof for eight days this month if they need urgent medical care.
The government said that the challenges in B.C. were not unique to the province.
“The shortage of doctors across British Columbia is not unique to our province. It’s happening all over the country and all over the world. It’s certainly one of the challenges that we’re facing and one the Health Minister and the government have been working very diligently to try and make sure we address,” said Clark.
The premier also chided the NDP for their own record on health care during their two terms in office from 1991 to 2001.
“They didn’t build a single hospital in the 1990’s, compared to over $7 billion invested in health capital all across British Columbia. They closed 3,000 hospital beds. They eliminated nearly 1,600 full-time nursing positions, and they failed to create a single new space for training doctors,” she said.
“Yes, on this side of the House we set goals. We set ambitious goals, because we believe in an ambitious future for British Columbia, and we believe in the people of British Columbia.”
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