Doctors campaign for voice at the table in health care solutions

P.E.I. doctors are taking advantage of the election campaign to lobby for a more active role in finding solutions to the province's health care problems.

The Medical Society of P.E.I. issued a Prescription for Improving PEI's Health-Care System last week, which it put together from a survey of its members.

"The system as it is right now is sick," said society president Dr. Kris Saunders.

"Patients wait a long time to see their physician and even longer time to see a specialists and there's all kinds of people who don't have a physician. We can't keep on doing the same things over and over and expecting something different. Physicians want to be involved in the solution."

The system could get rapidly worse, said Saunders. The survey found 56 per cent of P.E.I. doctors are considering reducing their workload, retiring, or leaving the province within the next five years.

Aiming to work together

Saunders said the society has been in touch with the province's political parties to share its views. He said doctors are not looking for hard solutions or even more money at this point.

"The ones that will strike home with me will be the ones that admit to not having all the answers and be willing to have all the stakeholders work together towards a common solution," he said.

The society wants doctors involved early in the decision-making process.

It says primary care needs to be designed for each community's needs. It also recommended a electronic health care records be created for all Islanders.

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