(L-R) Alberta NDP Red Deer-South candidate Michelle Baer and Red Deer-North candidate Jaelene Tweedle at the Red Deer Resort & Casino on Thursday. (rdnewsNOW/Alessia Proietti)

By Alessia Proietti

Family Health Teams

Alberta NDP visits Red Deer sharing plan to increase access to family doctors

Feb 23, 2023 | 4:37 PM

Local Alberta NDP candidates outlined on Thursday their plan to provide Red Deer residents with more access to family doctors.

Red Deer-North candidate Jaelene Tweedle and Red Deer-South candidate Michelle Baer held a press conference at the Red Deer Resort & Casino (3310 50 Ave), sharing that as of earlier this month, there were no doctors from the Primary Care Network accepting new patients in the city.

“Access to a family doctor isn’t a reality for a growing number of Albertans and, here in Red Deer, that number continues to climb,” said Baer.

She said due to the lack of doctors, families are forced to either visit hospital emergency rooms, which have caused increased wait times, ambulance line-ups and patient diversions, or leave problems to a crisis point.

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Tweedle claims many doctors are leaving the province, including her own family doctor, or retiring.

The two candidates reiterated the Alberta NDP plan, announced last week, which aims to create 10 Family Health Clinics across the province, with one in Red Deer.

READ: Alberta NDP launches significant plan to connect 1 million residents with family doctor

The Family Health Teams (FHT) could include multiple family doctors, as well as nurse practitioners, registered and licensed practical nurses, mental health therapists, pharmacists, social workers, dietitians, community paramedics, community health navigators, physiotherapists, midwives, speech language therapists, and others, all under one roof.

They say this system, based off the current Taber Clinic and Crowfoot Village Family Practice, would reduce administrative paperwork, the need for external referrals and wait times.

They say the Calgary clinic was able to serve over 24,000 patients, with each doctor able to serve 40 per cent more patients than usual. They also say the Calgary clinic saved the healthcare system $57.3 million over 10 years and the Taber clinic saved $62.2 million.

Tweedle added the Alberta NDP is committed to engaging in and funding meaningful consultation with Indigenous communities and healthcare providers.

Baer says the plan builds on the current Primary Care Network system and claims the UCP government does not have a plan to replace the lack of doctors.

The Alberta government announced this week an additional $243 million over three years into the primary health care system. The funding aims to work on recommendations from the Modernizing Alberta’s Primary Health Care System (MAPS), which covers recommendations from a Strategic Advisory Panel and an Indigenous Panel, support for Primary Care Networks and help to cover an expected increase in patients, and improve IT systems.

Health Minister Jason Copping said the panels’ reports should be completed this spring.

READ: Provincial government putting more money into the primary health care system