Alternative Medicine on the Rise?

Over 5 million Canadians seek out alternative or complimentary health products and treatments, and most of them pay out of pocket, which amounts to about $2.35 billion per year.

Why are Canadians turning to alternative treatments and natural medicines? Well, many of us have become a little skeptical of conventional drugs due to the widely publicized warnings of their potentially harmful side effects. Although most natural health products and traditional Chinese medicines don’t have scientific data to back up their safe use and effectiveness, they often have a well-established history of beneficial outcomes and testimonials accounting for their usefulness. Some remedies are based on more than 2,000 years of practice. 

Research

The amount of research generating evidence regarding ancient natural Chinese medicines and treatments is growing. The National Institute of Health, a research funding agency in the United States, is compiling data to support their worth.

• Health Canada created the Natural Health Products Directorate in 2004, regulating natural health products to ensure that Canadians are purchasing safe and high quality products.
• Ontario saw legislation pass in 2007 that required the regulation of practitioners of naturopathic medicine and homeopathy, as well as a number of traditional Chinese medicines and treatments, including acupuncture.

However, in the end, one has to question to what extent these regulations will benefit the patient when the high costs for setting up bureaucratic infrastructure and practitioners’ licensing fees will most likely be recouped by increasing the costs for already expensive health products and services.

Keep Doctors in the Loop!

Since natural or alternative therapies can be sought out without a prescription, it is advised that patients going that route provide full disclosure to their doctors of the natural products or healing therapies they are using. Medicines can sometimes interact in a negative way and cause health issues. Herbs and vitamins have been known to interact negatively in about 25% of patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Enhanced Health Insurance Coverage

Many Canadian health insurance companies now offer enhanced health insurance plans that include coverage for treatments by registered specialists and therapists including acupuncturists and naturopaths.

What is Canada Doing to Address the Shortage of Family Doctors?

Are you as concerned as I am over the thought that there is a real shortage of family doctors in Canada? Did you know that a staggering 4.4 million people in Canada do not have a family doctor? 

According to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, more than 75,000 doctors were actively working in 2012, which was a 4% increase from the previous year, and $22 billion was paid out for their services, which was a 9% increase from the previous year. So let’s see, we have more doctors working, their pay cheques are rising, but yet, patients are having the hardest time finding a family doctor. Something doesn’t seem right! Geoff Ballinger, manager of health human resources at CIHI said “I don’t believe Canada has a problem with the number of physicians, I think we have a substantial problem with the types and, furthermore, the distribution of doctors.”

Why are medical students not choosing to practice family medicine when there is a dire need for this profession? And what is the government doing to entice future doctors to enter this category of medicine? 

According to Statistics Canada, family doctors work an average of 51 hours weekly. The fact is, in this day and age, many young doctors are not willing to work the long hours that are part of a traditional family practice, especially those with children. The emphasis today is on adopting a work-life balance.  

While family medicine saw a spike in the 1980’s, it hasn’t been a chosen profession for many graduate students since the 1990’s, one of the reasons being that it is viewed a lower paid and less prestigious position than a career in the field of specialized medicine. What has the government done to address the problem? Since 1998, when pay caps in Ontario were removed, family doctors’ salaries have generally seen a substantial increase. In 2004, a yearly salary for a family doctor was about $200,000 and that amount steadily rose to $300,000 by 2010. As a result, family medicine professionals in Ontario have more than doubled over the last 10 years. 

Cities like Cambridge, Ontario present a good example to other Canadian cities as they’ve begun to handle the problem by mounting physician recruitment campaigns to entice young doctors to open practices in their communities. The response has been a positive one. Part of their recruitment plan includes outlining the highlights of living and working in the city for doctors and their families.

What have doctors and clinics done to address the issues of heavy case loads? Doctors who are practicing family medicine are finding ways to ‘lighten the load’ by joining group practices. Clinics have begun to hire more registered nurses who can interpret diagnostic tests, prescribe medications, and perform specific procedures, which are usually performed by doctors. 

It’s a work in progress.  Hopefully, as the needs of both doctors and patients are addressed, and the shortage of family doctors becomes ever more apparent, a greater number of future doctors will choose family medicine as their specialty.

Why is it so Hard to Find a Family Doctor these Days?

I, like many other Canadians do not have a family doctor, which means that having a yearly physical that would reveal any potential health problems can be a real concern. I’m currently on several doctors’ patient wait lists but I seem to have hit a brick wall. I worry that I will likely find out about a health issue only when it has become a critical issue! An unfortunate outcome of this scenario is that many of the costs for medical care could be avoided if a medical condition was foreseen at its onset. 

Doctorlink.ca is a free directory that lists doctors who are accepting new patients, which is a great tool for those seeking a family physician. It requires you to set up an account, and it works by matching you up with a doctor in any specialty in your area. I logged in, chose Family Medicine as the specialty, entered all the necessary information, including checking off the box that says ‘accepting new patients only’, and when I pressed submit I received the following message: Sorry, according to our records there are currently no Doctors who match your search criteria. Frustrated, I re-submitted my information without checking the box and came up with a directory of 22 family doctors in my area. I guess my next step would be to contact each doctor in order to be added to their waiting lists and hope for the best. 

There is always the option of having a yearly check-up at a private clinic. Although costly, at this point, it may be worth it. 

It would seem that the old system of one patient, one doctor, has seen its day. Just like in earlier posts, where I’ve discussed the issues of hospital wait times and suggested taking matters into your own hands by investing in a private health insurance plan that can lessen the wait by expanding your treatment options, I propose we take a similar approach by advocating for ourselves, and getting informed about the goings on in our communities when it comes to doctors, clinics, and health care options.

The Casualties of the Canadian Public Health Care System

I recently came across an article on Macleans.ca entitled “Our Health Care Delusion” (dated January 2011) that told the story of a 41 year-old man from West Kelowna, B.C. who, in the throes of a mental breakdown, smashed through the Emergency Unit of Kelowna General Hospital with his Chevy Blazer after waiting 90 minutes to see a doctor. Apparently, he had been advised it would be a 45 minute wait which, in truth, isn’t a long waiting time compared to today’s emergency room standards. He snapped when his threats to drive his truck into the hospital if he didn’t get treatment were dismissed by hospital staff.

Liberal MP and medical doctor Keith Martin said “the sorry state of the nation’s emergency wards is just one indicator of trouble today and trouble to come.” Martin, a former family and emergency room doctor, experienced dire situations that eventually prompted him to change professions and go into politics. He said most patients have to endure long wait times for hip and knee replacement surgeries, and others have to live with tumours that could grow into inoperable sizes while waiting months for diagnostic scans. Martin pointed out that, “those are the casualties of our health care system, and the casualties of the inaction of modernizing the system, that people don’t talk about.”

In 2014, Canadian health care will have to deal with the expiration of a 10-year health accord among the federal government, provinces, and territories.  The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) believes that changes to the Canada Health Act should include that Canadians pay small fees or deductibles for using health services in order to discourage people from overusing the system as most other OECD countries do.

Find out what your type of health coverage your province offers.

The Lack of Family Doctors in Canada: Millions are Going Without!

Are you one of the 4.6 million Canadians who don't currently have a family doctor? Well, the fact is this: 15 percent of Canadians are without family doctors, which causes overcrowded hospital emergency rooms, which translates into very long wait times, and results in much frustration and general dissatisfaction.  

If there is such a demand for family doctors, then why aren't more medical students motivated to practice family medicine?  The UBC Family Medicine Registry is eager to rectify the situation with a new program on the North Shore called Coastal Family Practice Residency. Its purpose is to hopefully entice students into family or general practice.

According to The Society of Rural Physicians of Canada, towns, with a population of under 10,000, account for about 22 percent of the nation's population but are served by approximately 10 percent of physicians. 

The College of  Family Physicians of Canada states, "More than 90 percent of Canadians indicate that a family physician is the first person they would turn to in order to address their medical problems" and, "on average one additional family physician per 10,000 people is associated with 5.3 percent reduction in mortality."

Demographics seem to factor into the decline of family physicians as a large number of health professionals will be retiring in the next 10 years.  The Canadian Medical Association reported in 2014 that out of the 38,000 physicians practicing family or general medicine, 41 percent are 55 years of age or older. Such statistics should appeal to the up and coming doctors, and make them keen to explore the incentives associated with the practice of Family Medicine.

Incentives: 

Let’s take Nova Scotia for example. This province offers the following incentives for practicing family medicine in the rural communities.  

• Relocation allowance of $5,000 to cover moving expenses such as airfare, car rental, accommodations and such.
• A bursary of $60,000 for establishing a practice in a rural Nova Scotia community.
• Eligibility to receive debt assistance between $20,000 and $40,000 for up to 3 years.

Medical students, who are uncertain as to which area of medicine to choose, would be wise to examine the particular needs of Canadians as well as the various incentives being offered by the provinces before making a decision.

Consider yourself a fortunate Canadian if you have a family doctor. And, should you find it necessary to seek medical care elsewhere, at some point in time, supplemental health insurance can be significantly valuable when health services are not so readily available.

According to Statistics Canada, in 2013 more than 15 per cent of Canadians or approximately 4.6 million people reported they did not have a regular medical doctor. - See more at: http://www.nsnews.com/news/family-first-1.1316489#sthash.z95U37CD.dpuf