Quebec has reached its goal of registering more than half a million people in family medicine groups (GMF) before the scheduled date, rejoices the Minister of Health Christian Dubé. Next step: ensure that all Quebecers have access to medical services quickly in the event of an emergency.
A total of 507,000 more Quebecers have been enrolled in family medicine groups as of February 23, Mr. Dubé announced on Friday. A target reached nearly a month before the deadline set by the minister, March 31. “Remember, a year ago, no one thought we were going to achieve this objective, and we said that the skeptics would be confused,” recalls Mr. Dubé in an interview with The Press.
“I think we should especially thank all the general practitioners of the Fédération des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec (FMOQ) who agreed to take up a challenge that seemed impossible,” he adds.
The care of Quebec patients by family medicine groups (GMF) rather than by family doctors is a “big paradigm shift” in the Quebec health system, recalls Mr. Dubé.
A patient cared for by a GMF can be followed by a doctor, but also a specialized nurse or a pharmacist, he explains. “Initially, I don’t hide it, what we wanted was care only by doctors because that has always been the rule [dans le système de santé]. »
But discussions in the parliamentary committee convinced the minister to extend this approach to other professionals. It is in this vein that the target of registering 500,000 Quebecers in a FMG before March 31, 2023 was established, in partnership with the FMOQ.
A “paying” approach, according to the minister, in particular because doctors no longer bear the weight of all their clients alone. “If your doctor is on vacation or if he is sick or whatever, what people want is to see a professional within a very reasonable time,” illustrates Mr. Dubé.
Another 600,000 “orphan” patients
This announcement does not mean that everything is settled, recognizes Christian Dubé. Another 600,000 people are considered “orphan” patients, that is to say they do not have family doctors or family doctors.
The deployment of the Frontline Access Counter (GAP) allows better care for these patients, believes the Minister. At present, the GAP handles approximately 20,000 calls per week, reveals Mr. Dubé, a statistic which, according to him, proves the effectiveness of the system. “It’s huge, because these are people who didn’t know where to call and who didn’t know what to do because they didn’t have doctors. »
Patients cared for by a GMF can also contact the GAP and be referred to the best place according to their needs.
“We are really in what is called relevance, and that’s what made the doctors ready to provide additional care, because there is a triage on the relevance that is done by the GAP. »
Don’t sit on your laurels
The target barely reached, the Minister of Health agrees that he cannot stop there. And at this point, the issue of speed of access to care is paramount.
“If you need an annual appointment, you don’t really care, whether it’s in two weeks or in a month,” notes Mr. Dubé. But if you have a case that you think is urgent, you don’t want it to take three months. That’s our next step: to deliver [les soins] within a reasonable time for those who have care. This is the goal for the next year,” he says.
The aim will therefore be to ensure that a certain number of appointments are reserved so that they can be assigned within 36 hours, for people who need a quick consultation.
An improvement that could prevent queues in Quebec’s emergency rooms, adds the minister.
“When we want to make changes, as we are doing right now in the network, successes like this one, that encourages people to say to themselves: “good God, we are capable”, concludes Mr. Dubé. That’s why yes, it’s good news, and why it’s encouraging for the other changes we’re putting in place. »