Dear Members,
Alberta’s health system is under extraordinary pressure. Physicians are feeling that pressure across the system, but the fundamental question for Albertans remains simple: can patients get the care they need, when they need it?
For many patients, that begins with a family physician. Family medicine is the foundation of Alberta’s health system, and Primary Care Networks (PCNs) are an important part of that foundation. Family physicians identify health concerns early, coordinate specialist referrals, manage chronic disease and help keep patients out of hospital. When Albertans can access that care, their experiences are overwhelmingly positive.
The AMA’s second annual State of Health Care report makes that clear: eight in 10 Albertans saw a family doctor in the past year, and 81% rated their last visit as very good or excellent. Access matters. Albertans who can get an appointment when they need one report much higher satisfaction with the health system than those still looking for a physician.
Yet too many Albertans still cannot find a family doctor. In fact, 16% do not have one, and 7% are actively looking but unable to find one. Even among those who have a doctor, only 53% say they can usually get an appointment when they need one.
The result is predictable. Patients who cannot get timely primary care go elsewhere. About 78% of walk-in clinic users are people who cannot see their family doctor soon enough, and more Albertans are turning to urgent care and emergency departments when they can no longer wait.
Alberta’s primary care reforms must stay focused on access. Albertans need to see that system change is making care easier to get, not simply changing how care is organized.
PCNs support team-based care in communities across Alberta. They help family physicians connect patients with nurses, pharmacists, behavioural health consultants, social workers, after-hours supports, chronic disease programs and other services that make care more comprehensive, coordinated and accessible.
PCN physicians and leaders support the goal of strengthening primary care and improving coordination across the system. They also understand, from direct experience, what patients and front-line care teams need in order for reform to work.
These needs are not abstract governance questions. They matter because uncertainty affects planning, staffing, local partnerships and the ability to maintain services patients rely on. Physicians and PCN teams have been working through a period of significant uncertainty. If they do not know what comes next, it becomes harder to retain staff, sustain programs and make decisions that protect access during the transition.
This is the risk we need to keep front and center. Reform cannot succeed if the foundation it depends on is weakened in the process. PCNs have built community-based capacity that supports patients, family physicians and the broader system. If that capacity is reduced before a stable transition plan is in place, the pressure will move somewhere else: back onto stand-alone family physicians, walk-in clinics, urgent care centres and emergency departments.
The risk is especially acute in rural and smaller communities, where the loss of even one program or team member can immediately reduce access close to home.
PCN physician leaders recently met with Minister Wright (Primary and Preventative Health Services) and his team for a constructive discussion about the future of primary care in Alberta. It was encouraging to see a shared commitment to improving patient access and strengthening primary care across the province. As reforms continue to take shape, ongoing clarity and engagement will be important to ensure physicians and care teams can continue providing the services Albertans rely on.
Physician-informed health care reform is essential. Changes to primary care must be grounded in the realities of front-line care delivery and accountable to the needs of patients. That means clear timelines, meaningful engagement with physician leaders and a funding approach that maintains existing capacity while the system transitions.
Alberta needs stability in primary care. Stability for patients who are looking for a family physician. Stability for physicians and teams trying to keep programs open. Stability for communities that rely on PCNs for access to local, team-based supports.
Physicians are ready to be part of the solution, and the AMA will continue to push for reforms that strengthen access, support continuity and ensure every Albertan can get the care they need, when they need it.
Regards,
Brian Wirzba, MD, FRCPC
President, Alberta Medical Association