Petition for more family doctors in BC launched by walk-in clinics group

The Walk-In Clinics of BC Association has launched an online petition, calling on the provincial government to provide more family doctors.

The petition, which can be signed on their website or on Change.org, says more than 300,000 people in BC do not have a doctor.

Those people usually end up going to the Emergency Department or lining up outside walk-in clinics before they even open, like this woman:

“As Canadians, the Canada Health Act entitles us to reasonable access to primary healthcare,” reads the petition.

“As BC taxpayers, our taxes (MSP premiums) also entitle us to reasonable access to primary healthcare.”

Therefore, says the petition, the BC government should:

• Train, recruit and fairly compensate enough family doctors to provide timely access to healthcare not only on weekdays but also after hours and on weekends
• Reduce or eliminate government red tape that stops family doctors seeing patients in a timely manner, while at the same time upholding quality of care and patient safety
• Engage with family doctors, health professionals, walk-in clinics and patients to provide access to healthcare in people’s neighbourhoods and local community.

The association will be officially launching the campaign at its Very Valuable Service conference in Burnaby on Friday.