PC health critic says N.L. government neglecting worsening doctor shortage

PC health critic Barry Petten says the growing number of people in Newfoundland and Labrador without family doctors makes clear the importance of a concrete plan from the provincial government.

According to the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association, the number of people without a family doctor in the province has increased from 136,000 last year to 175,000 this year — about one-third of the population.

A family doctor shortage is at the crux of the province's health-care crisis, says Petten, and as the population continues to age, the provincial government needs a more detailed long-term plan.

"I think we got a huge problem," Petten told CBC News on Thursday morning, in response to a CBC News article about the family physician shortage.

Possible solutions

Dr. Steve Major, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association, said earlier this week the provincial government has undervalued family medicine for years.

"When I started in practice 29 years ago, there was an excess of family physicians, and now we're into a shortage," he told CBC News.

"At some point in time, someone had to know that we were getting into a situation where we didn't have the adequate resources, and decisions weren't made."

The provincial and federal governments have agreed to invest nearly $2 billion over 10 years to improve health care in the province, but Major says the provincial government has yet to implement a concrete plan to boost the number of family doctors.

WATCH | PC MHA Barry Petten says there is a solution to N.L.'s doctor shortage:

N.L.'s doctor shortage is growing, but this Opposition MHA says there is a fix

4 months ago

Duration 0:51

Roughly 175,000 people in Newfoundland and Labrador don’t have a family doctor. The problem is getting worse, even as the provincial government focuses its efforts on the recruitment and retention of health-care staff. PC MHA Barry Petten says there is a way to fix the issue.

Major says more funding needs to be given to health care. He also says the medical association has been advocating for a national licensing process so doctors can work in any province.

Petten says he's been calling for a full-time health minister to address issues within the health care system, and says Premier Andrew Furey "missed the mark" by making Justice Minister John Hogan take on the additional responsibility of being the interim health minister.

"The premier's running around getting these photo ops and you got a part-time health minister," he said. "Who wins? There's nobody winning here."

There are solutions to the doctor shortage, says Petten, but the provincial government hasn't been receptive to his idea.

"I've talked about nurse practitioner model, the funding model for nurse practitioners to be able to fund government directly," he said.

"That would go a long ways in taking pressure off people needing access to a family doctor. That to me is a low-hanging fruit." 

The Health Department says it will answer questions about the doctor shortage Friday in an interview with CBC News.

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