Doctor shortage in B.C. deters those without family doctor from seeking care elsewhere

Leger shows 81% of British Columbians who have family doctors see their physicians at least once a year, but those without one avoid even walk-in clinics due to perceived long wait times. It found that 30% of respondents didn’t have a family physician and almost half of those avoided seeking treatment at walk-in clinics because of long waits. Doctors of B.C. says the findings are concerning and adds if people wait until they feel sick, they show up in hospital with more acute illness and diseases that went undetected, even cancer and heart disease, which has implications for the broader health system. Practitioners say the Health Ministry should work with family doctors on building a sustainable team-care approach to primary care instead of using scarce resources to build primary-care centres, which he characterized as "glorified walk-in clinics."