Primary care in Canada is suffering and doctors want input on how to fix it
Posted on June 30, 2025 in Health Delivery System
Source: TheStar.com — Authors: Tara Kiran
TheStar.com – Opinion/Contributors
June 30, 2025. By Tara Kiran Contributor
“Our primary care system — the part of health care meant to be our front door — is not working the way it should. But we have a chance to change that. And we know where to start: by listening to the people the system is meant to serve,” writes Dr. Tara Kiran.
I still remember the hope I felt in 2002 when I chose to become a family doctor. It wasn’t the most popular career path in medical school, but for me, it was a calling — the chance to build lasting relationships with patients and be there through every stage of life.
More than two decades later, it’s heartbreaking to see so many people in Canada still struggle to get that kind of care.
Right now, over 6.5 million people in this country don’t have a regular family doctor or nurse practitioner. And even for those who do, getting an appointment can be frustratingly difficult.
Our primary care system — the part of health care meant to be our front door — is not working the way it should. But we have a chance to change that. And we know where to start: by listening to the people the system is meant to serve.
That’s what we set out to do with OurCare — the largest public conversation about primary care in Canadian history. Over 16 months, nearly 10,000 people across the country shared their experiences and hopes for the future through a national survey, citizen panels and community around tables.
Despite differences in geography, age, and background, people largely agreed on what needs to change. They want a system where:
- Everyone has a relationship with a primary care clinician, who works with other health professionals in a publicly funded team.
- Everyone receives ongoing care from their primary care team and can access them in a timely way.
- Everyone’s primary care team is connected to community and social services that together support their physical, mental and social well-being.
- Everyone can access their health record online and share it with their clinicians.
- Everyone receives culturally safe care that meets their needs from clinicians that represent the diversity of the communities they serve.
- Everyone receives care from a primary care system that is accountable to the communities it serves.
These six statements make up the OurCare Standard — a bold, people-powered vision for what primary care in Canada should look like. It’s a framework to guide reform and evaluate how well our system is performing.
Now, we want to know how close we are to achieving that vision — and where we’re falling short.
That’s why we’ve launched a new national survey — to find out whether people’s actual experiences of care align with what they told us they want to see in a better system.
Do you have a regular family physician or nurse practitioner? Can you get care outside of typical working hours? Can you get services in a language that meets your needs? Do you have to pay out-of-pocket for care?
Importantly, the survey also asks where you live — because your postal code should not define the quality of care you receive.
People across Canada have told us what they want. This survey will help us understand how far we’ve come — and what still needs to change to make that vision a reality.
The 2025 OurCare national survey is open to all people in Canada aged 18 and over. It is confidential, takes about 10-15 minutes, and is open online until July 9, 2025 at OurCare.ca/survey.
Dr. Tara Kiran is a family physician and researcher at St. Michael’s Hospital, Unity Health Toronto, and the Fidani Chair in Improvement and Innovation at the University of Toronto. She is the national lead for OurCare and host of the podcast Primary Focus.
https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/primary-care-in-canada-is-suffering-and-doctors-want-input-on-how-to-fix-it/article_042eab25-20ba-45ad-96e3-e4d4e127b275.html
Tags: featured, Health, mental Health, participation, standard of living
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