By Guest Contributor

Physician leaders continue annual tour in northwestern Sask

Oct 21, 2016 | 11:35 AM

Dr. Intheran Pillay, president of the Saskatchewan Medical Association, and Dr. Joanne Sivertson, vice-president of the association, will meet with physicians from the Keewatin Yatthe Regional Medical Association (Ile-a-la-Crosse and La Loche, Sask.) Friday  to discuss health-care redesign and other topics related to the provision of health care.

The meeting is one of 12 stops as the SMA president and the vice-president tour the province to hear from local physicians. The annual president/vice-president tour is a tradition of the SMA, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2016. Drs. Pillay and Sivertson will share the responsibilities of the tour with one or the other, and sometimes both, attending meetings.

“These meetings are an opportunity for us to hear directly from local physicians about their concerns. We are here to listen and to learn what is working and what can be improved in Keewatin Yatthe Health Region and throughout Saskatchewan,” said Dr. Pillay, a family physician in Gravelbourg.

Drs. Pillay and Sivertson expect to hear from the physicians about the difficulties they and their patients face in accessing appropriate health-care services. But the challenges in the North go beyond the day-to-day provision of health care.
The shootings last winter in La Loche and the more recent suicides of children in Stanley Mission, La Ronge and Deschambeault Lake are stark reminders that there are no simple answers to improving the health and well-being of people living in northern Saskatchewan, say the physicians.

“Looking back at the shootings in La Loche, it’s important to recognize the resiliency of the community in the face of unbelievable tragedy,” said Dr. Pillay.

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“The health-care professionals need to know that we are here to support them as they seek to continue to provide care and support to their community to the best of their abilities.”

Saskatchewan’s health-care system is continuously changing and this fall is a particularly critical time for physician leaders throughout Saskatchewan to gather in their respective health regions to discuss the future of health care. The Saskatchewan government recently appointed a three-member advisory panel to examine reducing and restructuring the regional health authorities. The panel will also look at how to improve the delivery of services on a province-wide basis.

“We recognize Saskatchewan is facing significant fiscal challenges. That combined with the pace of spending and growth in the health-care sector will result in further pressures in health care,” said Dr. Pillay.

Dr. Sivertson agreed.

“We believe the physicians’ perspective on possible changes is important. By meeting with the physicians in smaller groups, we will hear directly from those providing care to patients. When we talk of health-care redesign, we are talking about improvements that result in better health and better health-care for the people of Saskatchewan,” said Dr. Sivertson.

Physicians are eager to be involved by providing leadership to make Saskatchewan the best place to practise medicine to the benefit of the patients and the physicians, say Pillay and Sivertson.

The Saskatchewan Medical Association (www.sma.sk.ca) is a voluntary, member-based, professional association for physicians, medical students and residents in the province and it is the provincial chapter of the Canadian Medical Association. As the trusted voice of Saskatchewan’s 2,300 practicing physicians, the SMA negotiates for and on behalf of our doctors; supports the educational, professional, economic and personal well-being of physicians; and advocates for a high-quality and patient-centred health care system.