The family doctor shortage is forecast to be worse within 2 years. Here's what an Ont. doctor says needs to change

Markham Stouffville Hospital family physician Allan Grill says Ontario is facing a "crisis" in family doctor shortages, as an Ontario medical association warns that a large and potentially growing proportion of residents aren't attached to a family doctor at all.

"Ontarians should not stand for this," Grill said in an interview Wednesday with CTV News Channel. "They should not feel that this is the standard we're looking for."

In a release Tuesday, the Ontario College of Family Physicians (OCFP) said more than two million people did not have a family doctor in the province, a number projected to rise to as high as 4.4 million by 2026, as many of those in the field plan to retire or scale back their services within the next five years.

"Family medicine is under enormous strain right now due to system-wide issues. However, we believe it's possible to turn this crisis around," OCFP president Dr. Mekalai Kumanan said in the release.

Grill pointed to compounding issues facing family doctors in the province.

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First, the profession is seeing a large administrative burden, he says, with family doctors spending as many as 19 hours per week on average filling out sick notes for absent workers, managing referrals to specialists and other tasks, on top of direct patient care.

As well, many Ontarians don't have sufficient or equitable access to other kinds of professionals such as social workers, dieticians and pharmacists, Grill said, which can mean additional pressure gets funnelled onto family doctors.

Finally, while costs for renting clinical space, staffing and maintaining medical supplies are rising, the compensation and funding model for Ontario family doctors has largely stayed the same, creating yet more pressure, in this case, financially, he said.

"I don't think family physicians are complaining that they don't make a good living," Grill clarified. "[Rising costs are] making it more challenging to run an office; more challenging to meet patient needs."

Meanwhile, an OCFP survey published last spring found that 65 per cent of family doctors indicated they were preparing to leave the profession or reduce their hours within the next five years, suggesting that existing shortages could worsen.

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"We must act quickly to provide immediate relief to family doctors," Kimberly Moran, the college's CEO, said in the May 2023 release.

"There is no time to lose."

Watch the full interview with Dr. Allan Grill at the top of the article.