Alberta introduces new physician assistants to reduce doctor workloads

[jdenning]

The PA role in Canada hasn't had much good press lately so I found this to be encouraging. I'm from Alberta and would love nothing more than to be able to go home to practice and be near family. So far my American husband is unenthusiastic...

 

I talked to the "special projects coordinator" for Alberta Health Services yesterday and asked whether MDs were on board with this as a government initiative and surprisingly he told me that the push for PAs came from the MDs themselves - several in different specialty areas, hospitalists, and ICU MDs - most of whom have some background doing residencies etc in the US and have seen the PA practice in action. I find this to be the most encouraging piece to this initiative.

 

 

 

Article is from Calgary Herald 10/18/13

 

Alberta’s health minister unveiled Friday a $3.8-million, two-year pilot project introducing physician assistants into the provincial health-care system in hopes of reducing patient wait times and doctor workloads.

 

Under the watchful eye of a supervising physician, PAs would be able to conduct limited initial diagnosis of patients, order lab tests, develop care plans and other minor duties, said Health Minister Fred Horne.

 

“In doing so they free up the time of the supervising physician to see not just patients with more complex needs, but more patients,” said Horne.

 

The Canadian Forces has used physician assistants for 40 years, but only more recently in provinces including Ontario and Manitoba.

 

According to the Canadian Association of Physician Assistants, it’s one of the fastest-growing sectors within the U.S. health-care system, with the physician assistant workforce projected to grow from 90,000 to 173,000 by 2020.

 

Initially, the province plans to roll out 10 physician assistants in Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer, Beaverlodge, Bassano and Milk River.

 

Physician assistants in Alberta can make a starting salary of $90,000. They are required to be certified and registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta.

 

“I want to make it clear, we need both nurse practitioners and physician assistants ... but I’d like us to expand this as far as we could,” Horne said. “It goes directly to wait times for people and it allows the physician to provide access to a greater group of patients.”

 

Liberal health critic Dr. David Swann said the introduction of physician assistants is a positive sign and could improve efficiencies in the province’s health-care system.

 

But the government should provide more clarity defining the roles of physician assistants and nurse practitioners and how they will complement each other, Swann said.

 

“Maybe the government in its wisdom knows more than I do about where they’re going with this,” he said.

 

“But its certainly not being clear to those of us in the public where this health-care system is going and how these different roles are going to complement, not compete and not undermine the appropriate shift to more community care.”

[EMEDPA]

^{"Under the watchful eye of a supervising physician, PAs would be able to conduct limited initial diagnosis of patients, order lab tests, develop care plans and other minor duties, said Health Minister Fred Horne."}

^{That does NOT sound encouraging....minor duties, watchful eye ....pass......}

 

[gleannfia]

• I am interested in working in Canada as well.  You would think with the need for more providers that they would have been on board with this decades ago.  I don't get it.  On the other hand, I am on a jobs email list for the UK, and it seems like they are starting to increase the utilization of PAs in their system.  As I am concerned Medicare may eventually be gutted in the US if certain ideologues prevail, I am seriously considering a move to the UK or Canada.

[jdenning]

Agree about the "under the watchful eye of the supervising MD" part but it sounds like that type if wording is necessary at least until there is a practice act and some type of regulation. So I'm ok with that for now. The profession is considered "new" in Alberta and other Canadian provinces so any amount of autonomy is going to take time to develop.

 

Let's face it- we all had to start with a much higher degree of supervision when we first started. There's no way I could have functioned successfully then the way I can now and I would bet that most of us have had this experience.

 

Most likely I'm going to stay put for now and watch how things develop but I also plan to contact some specialty groups and advertise myself and see what happens.

[china1622]

jdenning,

I am with you. My hometown is Calgary and would love to go back. Family may have a different opinion. Just one look at the Alberta Physician Link website shows the need for providers. The list is a mile long. I will be excited to see where this goes.

[rev ronin]

Gotta start somewhere if we want to get off the ground.

[EMEDPA]

Gotta start somewhere if we want to get off the ground.

yes, but... that somewhere shouldn't be way below the level of an np at the level of an american medical asst.

we need to set appropriate expectations from the start that we are not 2nd class providers....

[rev ronin]

yes, but... that somewhere shouldn't be way below the level of an np at the level of an american medical asst.

we need to set appropriate expectations from the start that we are not 2nd class providers....

Once we have them in Canada then we can start studies "Canadian PAs vs. USA PAs: utilisation (sic), efficacy, and safety". :-) Without the foot in the door...

 

I get what you're saying, E, I am just willing to take what's offered, and work with it, rather than waiting for a fully-formed modern practice act to spring forth from nothing.

[EMEDPA]

as long as we are comprable to the nps and not billed as third tier(md>np>pa) I'm ok with however it evolves.