More Than 1.2M Ontarians Travel At Least 30 Kilometres for Family Doctor Appointments: Report

Medical tools are pictured in an exam room at a health clinic in Calgary on July 14, 2023. The Canadian Press/Jeff McIntosh

Nearly 13 percent of Ontario patients connected to a family physician need to travel more than 30 kilometres for their appointments, a newly released study says.

The study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal tracked nearly 10 million Ontario residents living in urban and suburban areas who were registered with a family physician as of March 31, 2023, to assess the distance they travelled for doctor visits, as well as the related health outcomes for the patients.

It found that roughly one in 10 people lived at least 30 kilometres from their primary care physician and had a higher tendency to use emergency departments for non-urgent concerns. Most of these patients were male, younger than 65, of a lower socioeconomic status, or newcomers to the province.

“Compared with patients who lived 0 to 30 km from their family physicians, those who lived farther than 30 km away had greater odds of… having no visits to their family physician, and not being screened for cancer,” the report said. It also noted that this group had a lower average continuity of care scores.

The report also highlighted a reduction in access to primary care throughout the country over the past decade, a shift that was partially driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. Another trend was patients continuing to stay connected to their family physicians, even after moving, out of concern they will be left without a doctor.

Approximately 6.5 million people in Canada do not have a family physician or nurse practitioner they see regularly.

“This shortage and limited access to primary care providers has led many people to rely on walk-in clinics, hospitals, and alternative care methods, which is concerning since primary care serves as an essential access point to health care services, as well as a crucial resource in navigating the health care system,” the authors wrote. “Primary care provides critical services, including health promotion, disease prevention, diagnosis and management, referrals to other health care services, and coordination of care.”

Ontario Doctor Shortage

A shortage of family physicians has been a problem for several years in Ontario, prompting the provincial government to launch an initiative this year to address the issue.

The province announced in January its plan to connect all Ontario residents to primary care by 2029.

To do this, the government has earmarked $2.1 billion for the development and expansion of more than 130 primary care teams to connect individuals to a family doctor based on their postal code.The province said in June that $235 million has been allotted to connect 300,000 people on the Health Care Connect waitlist to primary care this year.

The government said this summer the number of individuals remaining on the list has decreased by more than 25 percent.

Jane Philpott, a former federal Liberal health minister appointed by the Progressive Conservative government to lead a provincial primary care action team, said Ontario will continue to recruit and retain doctors and other health professionals and expand the number of community-based primary care teaching clinics under the new initiative.

Family care teams will be made up of a family physician or nurse practitioner as well as nurses, physician assistants, social workers, and dieticians, she said.

The Ontario Medical Association has said the provincial health-care system is in “crisis.” The association said there are 2.5 million residents without a family doctor and predicted that number will grow to 4.4 million within a year.

Health Minister Sylvia Jones has countered the OMA’s assertions, saying  that information from the Canadian Institute for Health Information shows that 90 percent of Ontarians currently have a regular health-care provider. She said the province’s strategy is designed to cater to the remaining 10 percent.