Noah Ivers is a family physician at Women’s College Hospital and the University of Toronto and holds a Canada Research Chair in Implementation of Evidence-Based Practice.
The word trade-off indicates we gain in some areas while sacrificing in others. But in primary care, it feels like we are sacrificing quality, cost and time. We have two options now: Fix primary care or keep making trade-offs we shouldn’t have to.
COVID-19 has exposed the longstanding frailty of our health-care system. The truth is that every flu season, our hospitals burst at the seams. Hard-working health-care workers have held the system together so far. It’s past time to create the system they deserve.
When the next crisis hits, will we again rely on the sheer grit of heroic individuals to craft ‘work-arounds’ with patchwork solutions? Or will we invest in the infrastructure that would improve the lives of Canadians?