'We have no doubt this will help with physician retention in the short term and serve as a bridge… to longer-term solutions'
New Brunswick is offering doctors more incentives to continue their practice in the province.
The provincial government is introducing a new compensation model for fee-for-service primary care physicians.
This will encourage doctors to take on more patients and make the compensation package for primary care physicians more competitive with other jurisdictions. The move will also remove more patients from waitlists, according to the government.
“Money alone will not fix health care,” said Premier Blaine Higgs. “It takes new policy approaches, too. This new model creates an incentive for doctors who are in a place in their life that they can take on more patients. It invests in New Brunswick doctors and will benefit New Brunswick patients.”
Alberta also introduced a new compensation model for doctors this year.
New Brunswick’s provider and patient registry
New Brunswick is also creating a provider and patient registry. The registry will give doctors, regional health authorities and the Department of Health insight into the patient load of each family physician, according to the government.
“This investment in family physicians and their teams is a positive step to offset the cost of inflation, which has impacted the viability of medical clinics across the province,” said Dr. Paula Keating, president of the New Brunswick Medical Society.
“These changes will also facilitate the transition to team-based care and recognize the additional costs associated with larger patient rosters. We have no doubt this will help with physician retention in the short term and serve as a bridge while we work with the government and our health-care partners on longer-term solutions to the primary health care crisis.”
Physicians will be compensated to maintain their information on the registry, using a pay scale that encourages them to take on more patients.
As well, fee-for-service physicians will be able to bill for more services, such as office visits for minor ailments and other work done by a nurse.
The expanded codes for nursing services will take effect Sept. 16, and physicians will receive payments for their patient registry within the 2024-25 fiscal year. Further details will be shared with physicians by medicare and the medical society in the coming weeks.
This announcement is the latest of several initiatives from New Brunswick, which include a focus on:
- The recruitment and retention of health professionals, particularly physicians and nurses.
- Implementation of measures to encourage team-based practices, including enhancements to the Family Medicine New Brunswick Program.
- Alternative options to access care, such as 811, NB Health Link and eVisit.
To help out doctors, New Brunswick also previously made changes to forms involving the New Brunswick Medical Society and the departments of Social Development and Health that require physician involvement.
