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Canadian Medical Association President
Dr. Albert Schumacher challenged members of the Newfoundland and
Labrador Medical Association to show leadership on behalf of
patients and the profession in his speech to the Association’s
annual general meeting.
The challenges facing physicians and
their patients are many and varied, and the CMA and its divisions
have “accepted those challenges”.
“We are pressing governments to develop
real solutions to the problems in our health care system,” said Dr.
Schumacher. “We are pressing for self-sufficiency in health human
resources and a pan-Canadian HHR strategy. We are pressing forward
on behalf of patients and the profession and as we do so, I count on
your support and input.”
Dr. Schumacher, quoting Ralph Waldo
Emerson’s words about speech having the power to persuade and to
change the world, said that every physician is a leader in their own
community.
“I ask you to use that asset to our
advantage. The CMA and the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical
Association can project our issues onto the front pages, to the
premiers’ offices and to the halls of legislative power. But unless
our views, values and solutions are echoed by each of you on the
editorial pages or at a rotary club speech, they are quickly buried
and forgotten,” the CMA president said.
“I ask only one thing from each of you:
one letter to the editor of your local paper, or one speech to your
local service club; or one meeting with your local MP or MLA or one
fundraiser for your local politician or charity,” said Dr.
Schumacher. “Together we will achieve great things on behalf of our
members and our patients.”
The Windsor, Ont. family physician
highlighted the advocacy work of the CMA in his remarks to the AGM,
in particular the work of the Wait Times Alliance to improve access,
“job one for revitalizing the health care system”.
Schumacher noted that the Health Accord
signed by First Ministers in October 2004 was a “good start” to
revitalize the system. “It puts dollars back into the system that
the federal government cut in 1995. It creates change and provides
provinces with flexibility and new money for which the CMA fought
hard,” he said.
While the deal recognizes that
Canadians wait too long for many health care services, it is not a
cure-all for the system, he continued.
“The CMA is not dwelling on what the
deal will not do, nor are we waiting for governments to act on their
promises. Instead we helped form the Wait Time Alliance, an
unprecedented coalition of six national medical specialty partners.”
Dr. Schumacher said the coalition of
the “willing and able”, has embarked on an ambitious plan to make
sure the First Ministers’ Accord accomplishes what it has pledged to
do, that is to reduce wait times for patients.
These groups are directly involved in
providing care in the five priority areas identified by the First
Ministers. Its interim report, entitled “No Time to Wait”, was
released in May and the final report is expected in August. The
final report will round out the implementation plan, give
governments a “tool box for wait times” and lay the foundation for
improving access for patients.
The
full text of Dr. Schumacher’s speech is available in PDF
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