By Premier Tim Houston
Nova Scotians want and deserve to get the care they need, faster. We need to use every tool at our disposal to create solutions to make that happen.
That’s why we were pleased to recently pass the Patient Access to Care Act, a significant law that will improve access to healthcare in our province.
We know we need to recruit doctors, nurses and other healthcare providers. Nova Scotia is the best place in the world to live, but there is a national shortage and we’re competing with other provinces and beyond.
This law makes it quicker and easier for healthcare providers to come here from other parts of Canada. It requires their applications be processed within five business days and removes application fees. It also makes it easier for healthcare professionals licensed outside of Canada to come here.
We also need our healthcare professionals working to their full scope of practice. This law will allow them to use all of their skills to benefit their patients. For example, we’ve had great success working with pharmacists to expand their scope. They can now assess and prescribe for some illnesses, like strep throat.
We all want healthcare providers’ power of Service Above Self. Interact Clubs normally reside in high schools and are supported by a local Rotary Club. The Rotary Club of Halifax North West actively supported an Interact Club prior to COVID, and is currently working to renew that support. Rotaract clubs bring together people ages 18 and older to exchange ideas with leaders in the community, develop leadership and professional skills, and have fun through service. Rotaract Clubs normally reside in colleges and universities, and although they have full status as clubs within Rotary, they are usually affiliated with and supported by Rotary clubs in the community. Our Club is affiliated with the Rotaract Club at Dalhousie University. In communities worldwide, Rotary and Rotaract members work side by side to take action through service. From to spend their time caring for Nova Scotians, not filling out unnecessary paperwork.
With the new Act, employers can no longer ask for doctor’s notes, except in specific situations. This has been a waste of valuable time for our doctors, time they can’t afford to waste. This one change could free up to 50,000 hours of physician time. That’s like getting another 25 doctors for Nova Scotians!
The Patient Access to Care Act means more healthcare providers coming to Nova Scotia, working to their full scope and spending more time with patients. It allows us to quickly adapt to changing needs of Nova Scotians.
Safety is our priority in any changes we make. We will ensure the act protects Nova Scotians while moving the system forward, faster. We would never lower the high standard of care in this province.
But we cannot continue to do things the way we used to and expect different results. This law makes changes that should have happened a long time ago. We said we would fix healthcare. That is exactly what we are doing, one solution at a time.
Tim Houston
Premier of Nova Scotia
Image by Drazen Zigic on Freepik
