Steven Izen

@joe_warmington I love that in this political environment, our Canadian government takes a positive stand on equity & diversity. From the comments, it’s sad and disappointing how many people are so very insecure and hateful.

WARMINGTON: Only in Canada would government alter it's national flag to promote wokeness | Toronto Sun torontosun.com/news/local-new…

@TuraEmanuela @Josie_Osborne @LazenbyAlec Brilliantly said. The lack of GPs & Family Drs is a symptom of poor renumeration, that makes opening and maintaining a clinic financially unviable & unattractive. 7% increase VS. 43% inflation - means docs have taken a pay cut every year for 20+ years. It a financial issue

The real tragedy with BC's health system? Deliberate lack of transparency means almost nobody knows how broadly dysfunctional it is. And how little we know about the low productivity and ineffectiveness of the massive resources devoted to it. Things could be so much better.

@TuraEmanuela @SMYLS_Health @AlikaMD Great points! We can definitely learn somethings form AU. Particular about physician autonomy. It would see the politicians there realize they are not doctors, and respect physicians.

Australia doesn’t have 14+ health systems It has a single, consolidated market which means National licensure National HHR plans Coordination within the country, not competition

@BCCFP @DrJLush @CityNewsVAN The only reform that is required is to Pay family doctors fairly. Start by making up for 20 years of below-inflation increases and commit to a plan that keeps their compensation ahead of inflation. Everything else is negligible.

Listen back to @DrJLush on @CityNewsVAN: "We are asking the new Minister to sit down with #familyphysicians immediately and begin discussions on reforms that will make family medicine a more sustainable practice - and free up time for more patient visits.” vancouver.citynews.ca/2024/11/27/bc-…

So maddening. THIS kinda misleading noise does such harm. 👇 VERY obviously vaccines safety already studied! Mountains & decades of data. Thousands of researchers work in space. National surveillance programs. Independent entities assessing safety. Etc. It is also an example of the motte & bailey fallacy. Conflate the hard to defend (antivaxx noise) with easy to defend ("You are against safe vaccines? You monster!"). Vaccines have saved 150 million + lives in past 50 years, mostly kids: who.int/news/item/24-0… cc @picardonhealth @UbakaOgbogu

@markroseman @DoctorsOfBC For the past 20 years, DoBC has failed to secure fee increases that keep up with inflation—a key part of their mandate. Now, asking for more money so they can stay ahead of inflation feels incredibly tone-deaf

Big @DoctorsOfBC fee increase announced. Remains committed to fiscal responsibility and operational efficiency. Need to be ready for advocacy. Will docs buy the rationale? Surprised it came out before voting closed on DoBC elections (though most likely voted already)

It's not just Alberta—this issue affects all of Canada. The gap between fees paid to family doctors and inflation has grown so wide that family medicine is becoming financially unsustainable & less appealing as a career. We must advocate for fair fees to reverse this trend.

The QB Gov plans to use the Notwithstanding Clause to force Drs trained in the pros to stay. Instead of addressing Canada’s Dr shortage at its root—two decades of underpaying physicians. theglobeandmail.com/canada/article…

Every physician in BC should read and share Mark’s letter. markroseman.com/docs/

@CFPC_e Health homes are great idea,… Let’s first ensure Family Doctors are supported with fair, reasonable compensation that makes family medicine financially sustainable and an attractive career choice. A thriving healthcare system starts with valuing our Family Physicians.

The Patient’s Medical Home puts patients first by integrating services around the family physician and team-based care. It’s the future of family medicine in Canada. patientsmedicalhome.ca #PrimaryCare #PatientsMedicalHome

@markroseman @PfParks The spinning of data is crazy. What’s worse is just making it up. ps: does anyone know the formula used to calculate the panel payment ?

@PfParks All provinces cherry pick data and lie. Most people in BC believe that all FPs make (i.e., net) > $385k/y because of LFP. Of course, govt had DoBC right up there with them selling their lies. In the last month, we went from >1M w/o FP to 700k to all will have one by 2025. 🙄

There you have it FM Specialists in AB - this is what the "Office of the Premier" thinks... It wants to use old data, and to intentionally conflate aggregated data to make it seem like there is NO need to invest in the new funding model to support longitudinal FM care in AB /1

@dr_oona @dr_voon That doesn’t mean there are not other important issues, many of which are also exasperated by financial constraints.

@dr_voon Family physicians may graduate and choose to practice in the community, in long-term care homes, or in hospital (as hospitalists, or emergency rooms). We need family physicians in all these roles. Why are med students not choosing to specialize in family medicine? #JustAGP

Without a Family Doctor, you will still have difficulty accessing a specialist And specialists are finding themselves tied up doing things they would not have to, if their patient had comprehensive Primary Care One of the many system inefficiencies when the foundation is broken

@dr_oona @dr_voon I believe most medical students already understand that family practice can be financially challenging, if not unsustainable. The root cause of the shortage seems to come down to financial factors. The stats show the shortage grew as fees lagged behind inflation.

@drpaulwinston @jossreimer When an 0100 from 29.1 to 31.62 over 20yrs, while inflation was 43%, the LFP sounds great. A glass a water looks great when you've been in the desert for years. Personally don't believe it was socially responsible to force Family Drs to absorb the cost of inflation for 20 yrs

I also have so little respect for family docs I invite them into my clinic every week to train. And medical students headed to family practice.They are excited about the new funding arrangements. I love family practice, I also love people who have meaningful solutions that help society.

Canada needs more family doctors. Unfortunately, administrative burden is a huge deterrent against medical students entering family medicine. Let’s help physicians get back to seeing more patients, and doing less paperwork. thestar.com/opinion/contri…

@drpaulwinston @jossreimer @DrJLush @dr_oona Dealing with poverty and social inequity, along with the myriad of other issues Family Doctors deal with daily is exceptionally hard and tasking....Which is exactly why we should pay Family Doctors properly. At minimum let's catch them up to inflation at keep them ahead of it.

@steve_izen @jossreimer @DrJLush @dr_oona In medicine, we deal with poverty and social inequity every day it’s a huge part of our job. as physicians, we are highly privileged and average earn beyond the threshold for the top 1%.

@drpaulwinston @jossreimer @DrJLush @dr_oona I’m all for a healthy debate on the value of Family Doctors, and I’m happy to engage and defend my views. However, focusing on personal details like where they send their kids to school or where they vacation feels unnecessary and judgmental. Let’s stick to the real issues.

Steve thanks for this the family doctors who know me and care for me not think this. I disagree that GPs should be paid 700-900,000 a year. That makes me socially responsible. @DrJLush @dr_oona if you follow my feed I have huge respect for them. Just not you only posts over and over pay more. Your insult is a Projection of yourself

@drpaulwinston @jossreimer After sharing your post (and prior posts) with several Family Doctors, the general consensus was: "he is just another specialist who lacks understanding, appreciation, and respect for the important work that Family Doctors do"

@steve_izen @jossreimer I’ll remember to take up a collection plate particularly for the FP that billed $600,000 on your list. Send their kids to private schools that I know, take vacations in Mexico and have ski condos and for the graduating family docs signing onto salaries over $350,000

@doctor4humans @TuraEmanuela @Dave_Eby Currently we have enough trained family drs in BC. Sadly less then half have longitudinal practices. Because being a Family Dr is not financially viable nor attractive.… and new grads are well aware of this. Making FM the least desirable specialty. LFP does not fix that

@TuraEmanuela @Dave_Eby It is incorrect, and I am not sure why you keep disseminating this misinformation. The recent changes in payment model increased satisfaction and drs recruitment in BC. The limiting factors is of course the balance retiring/grads+relocating, but overall it's much better since LFP

My wife, Cailey, has seen the human cost of John Rustad’s cuts to reproductive health care. Rustad isn’t doing anything new – he will do exactly what he’s done throughout his 20-year record. Cutting healthcare, canceling projects, and leaving people to deal with high costs.