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By Lisa Parent

Medicine Hat physician voices concerns over health-care system’s precarious state

Nov 3, 2023 | 4:15 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – Dr. Paul Parks, an emergency physician in Medicine Hat, is also the new Alberta Medical Association President. Parks has been travelling across Alberta to meet health-care workers and hear their concerns regarding the health-care system.

A prominent issue he has encountered is the accessibility of family medicine specialists. Parks says in Grande Prairie, almost 40% of the population does not have access to a family physician. That is just one of many places across Alberta dealing with a physician shortage.

Another issue is the current funding model for family medicine. Parks says clinics are struggling to pay overhead and stay open. To fix this, he says the provincial government will have to work closely with health-care experts, to stabilize family medicine and evolve the current funding model.

“The system is very fragile right now. It’s really struggling to provide timely access to patients in many, many facets of the health-care system, not just primary care, but also in the hospital, also surgical wait times” says Dr. Park.

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He adds, “I mean, the people working in the system are truly working very, very hard to keep service going into and to take care of Albertans, but they’re struggling. So I think we’re really worried that any little small changes In the system that aren’t well thought out and informed by the experts could have major like ramifications throughout the whole system.”

Dr Parks will be continuing his tour into southern Alberta on Tuesday.