Ontario Hansard - 17-November2005

ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE

Ms. Laurie Scott (Haliburton-Victoria-Brock): My question is for the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care. Despite the new health care tax you've levied on the people of Ontario, they are still facing serious problems accessing health care. In communities across Ontario, there are still many thousands of individuals and families who are unable to find a family doctor. These are orphaned patients. In my riding of Haliburton-Victoria-Brock, there are tens of thousands of orphaned patients. They need access to health care now. These orphaned patients cannot properly access health care services. Minister, when are you going to help these orphaned patients get the health care they need?

Hon. George Smitherman (Minister of Health and Long-Term Care): It's a very interesting question, coming as it does on a day when I've announced a significant increase in the size of our family residency programs, made possible because of the work that our government is doing to renew comprehensive family care. But it's an even more interesting question coming from an honourable member who might have more appropriately stood in her place and said thank you for the investments that were made, as our government announced just last week to bring two community health centres to her riding, to the patients in Minden and Brock township.
Interjections.

Hon. Mr. Smitherman: I'm sorry. Now I'm in trouble over here.
Those important investments are in addition to the family health team that we've announced for Haliburton, which I had the privilege of attending at, alongside the honourable member.
The evidence is very, very clear that our government believes it's fundamentally important that we deliver primary care reform in a fashion that accesses more care for more patients. Accordingly, our commitment to build 39 additional community health centres, to build 150 family health teams, 69 of which are on their way to full completion, is very apt evidence that --

The Speaker (Hon. Michael A. Brown): Thank you. Supplementary?

Ms. Scott: The family health teams are supposed to provide improved access to care in order to improve health outcomes. It's the family health teams in my riding that are asking the questions. Are the orphaned patients who do not have family doctors going to be able to access other services available through the family health teams? They've been asking your ministry and no one has been able to tell them. Will the orphaned patients be able to use the comprehensive chronic disease prevention and management programs? Will they be able to access the health promotion programs and social workers? Will they be able to book appointments with a physiotherapist and obtain dietitian counselling? Minister, does being an orphaned patient without a doctor exclude someone from accessing the services of the other health care professionals who are part of the family health teams?

Hon. Mr. Smitherman: By its very nature, the interdisciplinary approach is to provide a comprehensive array of services to patients. The team approach is particularly effective in those environments where patients have underlying challenges: chronic health conditions like asthma or diabetes, or related to aging, as an example, where they have a complex range of needs. Accordingly, family health teams are coming to life in the province of Ontario in a variety of different ways, and many of the questions you ask are best answered locally. We have determined that it's appropriate not to be overly prescriptive but rather to allow family health teams to emerge depending on the population health basis. In some cases, that will mean that they're targeted toward seniors who need this array of services; in other cases, maybe toward younger families where a midwife might more appropriately be part and parcel of the team.
Accordingly, people in communities all across Ontario can expect that this government will be the one that meaningfully addresses orphan patients who were created by your government and that one over there.
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