Kitchener doctor taking on challenge of tackling family physician shortage

Ontario is facing a crisis with family physician shortages.

It’s the first thing out of Dr. Mekalai Kumanan’s mouth as she discusses her new role as president of the Ontario College of Family Physicians, which represents more than 15,000 family doctors across the province.

“We are facing a crisis, and as much as tomorrow is going to be a celebration as I step into this new role, we are very aware of the crisis we are facing in family medicine and we also have clear solutions,” the doctor from Kitchener said on Wednesday.

It’s a three-pronged approach the college is pushing the Ontario government to incorporate, focusing on building allied health teams around family physicians, freeing up the amount of time they spend on administration work and bolstering recruitment and retainment in the profession.

There’s a lot at stake, said Kumanan.

Family doctors are retiring at an alarming rate, with one-in-five physicians reporting to the college they intend to retire in the next five years.

More than 1.8 million people in Ontario are already without a family doctor.

If trends continue, said Kumanan, that number is expected to jump to three million by 2025, representing about one in five Ontarians.

As the population continues to age, she said, family doctors have never been under more duress, dealing with patients who are presenting with more complex medical issues which often require more time.

It’s already taking a toll, with two out of three family physicians reporting moderate to severe burnout.

A major part of that is linked to administrative duties, said Kumanan, which generally makes up about a quarter of a family physician’s time, which is time they could be spending with patients instead.

“We have chronically failed to pay enough attention to our primary care system, so we need to look at how we can build an infrastructure so that family physicians can focus on practising family medicine rather than running a small business,” she said.

It’s not going to be an overnight fix, but Kumanan said she is willing to work with government officials to start acting now to incorporate policies that will alleviate the strains.

Kumanan comes to the position after 14 years working as a family physician at the Cambridge Health Link.

She is the first person of colour to ever hold the position of president, and said she will be championing equity, diversity and inclusion at the college.

“I was seeing a patient recently who is a person of colour, and I was casually asking about how their new baby was doing, and he said: ‘She’s good, she’s really healthy, she’s doing well, and she’s going to be a doctor, just like Dr. Kumanan.’ ”

It was an eye-opening conversation, she said, because it was a reminder that achieving these types of positions gives future generations the ability to see themselves achieving the same goals.

“It really caught my attention and made me realize how, at times, I am playing that role as a leader and a role model for my patients as well. And that just brought so much more meaning for me.”

Kumanan will officially begin her role as college president on Thursday.

More than 1.8 million people in Ontario are already without a family doctor … That number is expected to jump to three million by 2025