Doctors Manitoba expects exodus of physicians

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This article was published 25/10/2022 (791 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitobans who are struggling to find a family physician or see a specialist could face even fewer options, Doctors Manitoba has warned.

The advocacy association raised alarm over a growing physician shortage in the province. A recent survey of doctors indicated 43 per cent are planning to retire, leave Manitoba or reduce their clinical hours within the next three years.

Manitoba has the fewest number of family doctors, per capita, in Canada. Another 360 doctors are needed to bring physician coverage in Manitoba up to the per capita national average, the report noted.

“Manitoba has seen a significant increase in the number of practising physicians over the past 20 years, but our increase has not kept up with other provinces, leaving us with one of the biggest physician shortages in Canada,” Doctors Manitoba president Dr. Candace Bradshaw said in a release.

“For patients, the physician shortage is leading to unreasonably long wait times, unnecessary delays for surgery and testing, and it’s making it difficult to find and see a family physician.”

Persistent physician shortages in rural and northern health regions are more significant than comparable jurisdictions in other parts of Canada, the report noted.

In the past two decades, the number of physicians working in Manitoba has increased at a slower rate compared to other Canadian jurisdictions. The province has had a 19 per cent per capita increase in physician coverage compared to a 29 per cent increase across the country.

Meanwhile, in the past four years, the number of doctors who retire each year has more than doubled, the report found.

Eleven per cent of all doctors in Manitoba — a total of 348 — plan to retire within three years.

In northern Manitoba, 18 per cent of physicians surveyed by Doctors Manitoba indicated they would leave the province, 21 per cent intend to reduce their hours, and five per cent said they would retire within three years.

Thirteen per cent of doctors in the Prairie Mountain Health region also said they intend to leave the province while 14 per cent said they would retire within three years.

The report found that 74 per cent of doctors cited systemic or institutional issues as their reason for leaving or reducing their practices. Nearly half of the doctors planning to change their practice said they were frustrated by “system issues” outside of their control.

Burnout is the biggest challenge to retention, said Dr. Shelley Anderson, the medical lead for physician health with the advocacy group.

“The root causes of burnout are largely system issues, not due to a lack of resilience on the part of individual physicians,” Anderson said. “These issues include a growing administrative burden, a lack of engagement with physicians, and an erosion of control for the patient care for which physicians are ultimately responsible.”

Projects are underway to address burnout in three of five health regions, in collaboration with local authorities, Doctors Manitoba said. Action plans for the projects will be published later this year.

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca