Dear Members,
On Friday, May 16 a cabinet shuffle was announced that included some health system restructuring at the ministerial level, aligning responsibilities with the four provincial agencies of the health system refocusing. Four ministers will now be engaged in policy setting for delivery of health care in Alberta.
Minister Adriana LaGrange’s portfolio becomes Primary and Preventative Health Services, while Minister Matt Jones will oversee Hospital and Surgical Health Services. Minister Rick Wilson has taken on the role of Minister of Mental Health and Addiction. Minister Jason Nixon, already managing continuing care, will now lead Assisted Living and Social Services.
The tsunami of health system refocusing continues. As this latest wave washes through, we are seeing recognition that different aspects of health care cut across the agencies. Many physicians work in all four domains but more importantly, patients need care from all four.
I extended best wishes on this new phase to Minister LaGrange. There are many questions that will need to be answered but I have always appreciated that she has made herself available for discussion. We have seen that alignment is possible on key issues such as the Primary Care Physician Compensation Model rolling out across the province. Government’s advertising campaign and communication encouraging measles vaccination is welcome but clearly Public Health needs a larger role to help with this worrisome outbreak and for all the essential roles that these specialist colleagues play.
I hope to engage with Minister LaGrange’s three cabinet colleagues at my earliest opportunity.
As we have been saying for many months, our acute care system is in deep distress, and we have put forward stabilization proposals in many venues from modernizing ARPs to improving Physician On-Call to enhancing after-hours care. There are solutions and we are working ceaselessly to advance them. We need to see progress, and soon.
We have been invited by the Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction to provide input for the regulations under the Compassionate Intervention Act. There are many issues to resolve, including consideration of the ongoing impact of colonialism and intergenerational trauma in addiction and mental health patient populations. We will work on these critical issues with the specialty sections that are involved.
As Assisted Living Alberta joins the newly renamed ministry alongside social services, we are collaborating with physician leaders to assess risks and opportunities. Our focus is on integrating the many points of care — connecting seniors and frail Albertans with physicians, home care and allied professionals within wraparound and incremental services in the community. The goal is to support individuals in maintaining their health and quality of life, allowing them to remain independent for as long as possible.
We need to see informed reform. We have solutions and working together, we can find more. We have more venues now in which to bring forward ideas and expertise, and we have more contacts to make. We will continue to work for our patients — so that we can deliver the high-quality care that we are trained to provide.
Sincerely,
Shelley Duggan, MD, FRCPC
President, Alberta Medical Association