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Healthcare in Ontario

Family doctors are the best practitioners to manage and coordinate your healthcare and treatment.

HERE'S WHY:

Ontario’s family doctors are often your first point of entry into the healthcare system and are uniquely qualified to provide support, education and comfort on a continuous basis.  Family doctors coordinate treatment for all types of problems, whether biological, behavioural or social, based on broad training in internal medicine, surgery, paediatrics, obstetrics/gynaecology and psychiatry.  General and family physicians practice in a variety of community settings, working with other healthcare providers to ensure the needs of their patients are fully met.  Ontario’s family doctors are proud of their chosen specialty and of the crucial role they play in caring for people.

THE FACTS

• Family physicians and general practitioners are consulted by close to 80% of Canadians  each year, which is the highest of all health professional groups.
• In a 24 hour period in Ontario, there are 137,000 visits to a family doctor, compared to 12,000 emergency department visits, 3,000 hospital admissions and 50 hip and knee replacements.
• Family physicians are the most educated frontline healthcare professional. It takes 10 years education to become a family physician, 5 years to become a pharmacist and 4 years to become a nurse and 1 additional year to become a Nurse Practitioner.
• No other frontline healthcare provider has as extensive an education and training in the most crucial step in healthcare: diagnosis. Not one. 
• People with family doctors use emergency services less.
• Ontario ranks 8th in Canada in terms of the number of doctors per 100,000 people.
• People with chronic diseases who have a family doctor require less hospitalization and develop fewer complications than those without a family physician.
• Ontario’s population will grow by 2.5 million people over the next two decades with the number of people 65 years and older doubling. Ontario’s family physicians will have to provide care for:
  • 2.4 million new diabetes cases by 2016 up from 1.4 million today.
  • 91,000 new cancer cases by 2020 up from 53,400 today.

 

THE REALITY

• Doctors are paid a fee of $32.35 for the most common examination.
• Minor examinations are paid at $20.00.
• Doctors are paid $68.75 for an annual physical examination.
• Family doctors who practice in a health network are paid $112.94 per patient, per year, on average to look after the most common patient needs.
• The physician’s overhead costs (rent, supplies, office staff, benefits, etc.) will consume 41% of these fees.

 

THE SOLUTION
Ontario’s doctors have been working harder than ever. Since 2004, 800,000 patients that didn’t previously have access to a family doctor now do and we are working with the provincial government to find a doctor for another 500,000 people.
As crucial as family medicine is to patients, it must be appealing for new medical graduates and practicing doctors alike to ensure Ontario has enough family doctors in the future to meet the growing patient care needs.
Family doctors should be provided with the resource needed to meet your healthcare needs and should be the practitioner responsible for coordinating your care.

 

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Preventing the Spread of the Flu

Cleaning your hands is your best defense against the flu
Flu viruses can live on your hands for up to five minutes and they can live on hard surfaces that you touch with your hands – like countertops and telephones – for up to two days. So clean your hands often to protect yourself and others from getting the flu.

Hand washing
Soap and water work well, but be sure to use lots of soap and water. Wash your hands thoroughly for about 15 seconds. Try humming a favourite tune and keep washing until the song is over to make sure you wash your hands long enough.

Alcohol-based hand sanitizer
Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are as good as soap and water to clean your hands, unless they are visibly dirty. Make sure you really rub the sanitizer all over your hands, and be sure to use a sanitizer that contains 60 – 90% alcohol base. Keep alcohol-based hand sanitizer handy at home, at work, at school, and in the car.

Cough into your upper sleeve
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze and dispose of tissue. If you don't have a tissue, cough into your upper sleeve.

Stay home when you are sick
Avoid large crowds of people where viruses can spread easily.

So . . .

Practice good hand hygiene
Wash your hands often
Use alcohol-based sanitizer

Keep common surfaces and items clean and disinfected 

Cough into your elbow or upper sleeve

Stay home if you do get sick

 

For more information call:
ServiceOntario, Infoline at 1-866-532-3161

Or Visit:

Ontario's Ministry of Health

The Public Health Agency of Canada

The World Health Organization