Recent data from the College of Family Physicians of Canada (2010) shows that only 17.5% of family practices are open to new patients. Given the acknowledged shortage of family physicians in all jurisdictions, the CDPA’s third accessibility initiative was a study that investigated whether patients with disabilities had greater difficulties finding a family physician in Ontario.
Primary care is especially important for disabled Canadians as they have thinner margins of health, fewer opportunities for health maintenance and prevention, earlier onset of chronic conditions, and longer, more complex treatment for common health problems. This report reviews the barriers that disabled Canadians face and investigates whether programs like the Ontario Government’s Health Care Connect were working to ensure people with disabilities equitable access to the health care system. The CDPA’s report on this subject can be viewed here.
We found that in most regions, the program was successful in linking disabled individuals with family physicians. Wait times for disabled and non-disabled Ontarians were comparable; however, program staff encountered many difficulties in linking disabled registrants in the program. Some of the obstacles were obvious, like the need for accessible offices and difficulties with transportation, particularly in rural and Northern regions. Other obstacles that were challenging include low physician subscription to the program in some areas, and physicians refusal to take disabled patients.