[Maritime Q-Scout]

I think we need to re-think how we deliver healthcare in our country.

Obviously, I have more experience with the Nova Scotia system and none with the Alberta but I'd assume they're relatively similar.

Also keep in mind I don't work in healthcare, so I may be way off base on these thoughts and am welcome to feedback.

1. Family Doctors. They should serve a similar purpose they do now. Basically be a physician to oversee you're overall health and be a constant for you.

2. Walk-in Clinics. These should be in every community, ideally staffed by Nurse Practitioners and some Doctors. Of whom, they are employees of the province. If you have the sniffles, an infection, need an antibiotic, etc. this is likely where you'd go. This fills the role of "need to see a doctor, it isn't an emergency, but I can't wait 3 weeks for a regular appointment with the family doc".

3. Walk-in clinic connected to but not part of ERs. Basically filling the same role but diverts those who go to the ER for a hangnail, or Rx for amoxicillin.

4. ERs function as it, but divert the mild cases to the Walkin Clinic in the hospital. Speed up those who need emergency care by not having to attend to those that a NP can see.

5. Increase Med School seats. Nova Scotia just announced a new medicine program for Cape Breton University. There's a lot of question marks about this announcement but on the surface it's a good thing and a start.

6. Make it easier for doctors to come into the country, especially Canadians that have been trained elsewhere. If you're from an accredited school, get them practicing at home.

I also think doctors that work full-time in provincial hospitals should be employees of the province, but I know that's more complicated than that I just don't know enough about it. Seems weird to me that a full-time ER doc is a private contractor.

If we want to take the business out of front-end healthcare we need to take it out of the back-end as well.