Addressing Canada’s Primary Care Crisis and Building Upstream Health Systems

Canada faces a crisis in access to high-quality primary care. This in-person working meeting with policymakers, researchers, providers, and patients discussed the crisis and emerged with the next steps towards new approaches with a system for accountability.

Chestnut Conference Centre, 89 Chestnut St., Toronto, ON
University Room – 3rd Floor

Meeting Objectives

• Present the latest evidence on the crisis and risks of continuing with current approaches to primary health care delivery
• Understand the current state of primary health care and efforts to address the crisis across different Canadian provinces and territories
• Discuss potential solutions that reshape primary health care delivery while building an upstream health system
• Bring together policymakers, academics, providers, and patients to develop specific action plans and emerge with a system for accountability

Presentation Recordings

Day 1: Thursday, November 30, 2023

Welcoming remarks and orientation to the meeting
Andrew Pinto, MD MSc

10 facets of the crisis in access to primary care
Mélanie Ann Smithman, PhD

Opening keynote
Jane Philpott, MD MPH

Building solutions to improve access to primary care for Indigenous communities
Allie Kinnaird, BA and Suzanne Shoush, MD

Panel 1: Overview of the primary care crisis – what are the dangers of business as usual?
Panelists: Rick Glazier, MD MPH and Andrew Pinto, MD MSc
Moderator: Mélanie Ann Smithman, PhD

Panel 2: Provincial and territorial perspectives on solutions
Quebec: Maxine Dumas-Pilon, MD CCMF FCMF
Nova Scotia: Lynn (Carolyn) Edwards, BScNut, MHSA, EXTRA Fellow, CHE
Yukon: Jessica Murphy, MSW BSN
New Brunswick: Penny Higdon, BSc BNRN
Moderator: Mathieu Isabel, MD MA

Patient and public recommendations for a better primary care system
Tara Kiran, MD MSc, Neb Kovacina, MDCM CCFP MHSc and Sandra Epp

Panel 3: Tackling the crisis in primary care while building an upstream health system
Panelists: Emily Marshall, PhD, Michael Green, MD MPH, Mylaine Breton, PhD MBA, Beth Cowper-Fung, NP-PHC MN
Moderator: Jane Zhao, MSc

Day 2: Friday, December 1, 2023

Session 2A: Primary Care Workforce and Solutions
Ivy Lynn Bourgeault, PhD

Session 2B: Financing and Funding
Audrey Laporte, PhD

Session 2C: Leveraging Data, New Tools, and AI to Address the Crisis
Carolyn Steele Gray, PhD

Closing keynote
Danielle Martin, MD MPP DSc

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