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Writer's pictureJohn Paul Tasker

Massive new survey finds widespread frustration with access to primary health care

OurCare Initiative finds primary care is the top concern as 6 million people go without a family doctor

CBC News · Posted: Feb 27, 2024


A doctor enters an exam room to consult with a patient. A new report from the OurCare Initiative has found an estimated 22 per cent of Canadian adults — about 6.5 million people — do not have a family doctor or nurse practitioner they can see regularly. (Charlie Riedel/AP Photo)

A Toronto-based research team met with and surveyed some 10,000 Canadians about the state of the health-care system — and what they found is deep dissatisfaction and frustration with primary care as the country grapples with a severe shortage of family doctors.


The OurCare Initiative — led by Dr. Tara Kiran, a family doctor and scientist with the MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions at Toronto's St. Michael's Hospital — conducted a national survey, assembled five "provincial priorities panels" and convened a series of community roundtables over the past 16 months. It just released a 72-page report describing its findings.


It's one of the most comprehensive surveys ever conducted on Canadians' views of the health system and it provides crucial data on the poor state of primary care access in a growing and aging country.





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