Primary Care Reform: Implications for Public Health

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The solutions:

• More effective chronic disease prevention (public health interventions)
• More effective chronic disease management

PHC system cannot deliver

• Only 50-60% of effective prevention interventions are being provided
• Only 50-60% of effective therapeutic interventions are being provided
• With current workforce strength it is impossible to reach optimum delivery based on physicians alone in primary care

Family physicians

• Presently the core of primary health care delivery in BC, good foundation to build on
• Work in isolation – not part of PHC teams, not involved in hospital care, not in RHAs, (pandemic flu – not part of disaster preparedness)
• Do not have EHR
• Are demoralized
• Are already stretched – cannot deliver more prevention or care without system change