Doctor registrations up in Alberta, but physicians say numbers don't tell the full story

While the Alberta government is celebrating a net increase of 518 registered doctors over the last year, some physicians say it's too early to get excited about improved access to health care. 

From July through September, 12,126 physicians were licensed to practice in the province, according to the latest report from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta.

That's up 4.5 per cent from the 11,608 doctors licensed during the same period a year ago.

The stats show "promising progress," according to Alberta's Health Minister Adriana LaGrange. 

"These record numbers reflect that there are more doctors registered in Alberta today than at any other time in the province's history," said LaGrange in a statement. 

"Our efforts to attract and retain physicians are paying off, but we recognize there is more to be done."

Between July 1, 2023, and July 1, 2024, Alberta's population grew by about 4.4 per cent, according to the province's most recent population report.

Doctors say more context is needed

The latest physician registration numbers lack context, according to the Alberta Medical Association.

"We don't know what those 500 or so physicians are doing. We certainly know that there's lots of physicians who go and work in other provinces and maintain their licensure here," said AMA president Dr. Shelley Duggan.

"We also don't know whether they're part-time, full-time, semi-retired."

In a news conference on Thursday, LaGrange told reporters at the Arthur J.E. Child Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Calgary that 286 of the 500 new physicians are family doctors.

Her comments were followed up by Premier Danielle Smith, who said she didn't readily have numbers denoting how many are full-time practitioners.

"We can get back to you with those numbers. I mean, I don't know what you would call part-time because the practices have changed. I mean, 20 years ago, doctors would have 1,500 patient panels. That's not common today. And so part of our model that we're putting forward is trying to encourage doctors to have 500 patient panels," Smith said. 

Duggan said all new physicians are welcome in the province, but Alberta sorely needs family medicine specialists practicing comprehensive care. 

The report from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta shows the number of licensed physicians specializing in family medicine increased by 263, or about six per cent in the last year. 

But freshly credentialed family physicians often opt for less traditional forms of practice over the much-needed comprehensive care model, according to family physician and University of Calgary health services researcher Dr. Terrence McDonald.

"It's a preference that they have to find easier, niche-based focused practices that do not involve having to take on ownership of a building," he said.

"Newer family physicians … do not want to be business owners. This has been said time and time again." 

Physicians call for changes

Both Duggan and McDonald said the province needs to prioritize rewarding comprehensive primary care.

The Alberta Medical Association has been working for a year to get in place a new payment model for family doctors and rural generalists.

"We just need to retain the physicians we have. We need to get them doing the work that we need them to do, and that requires incentivization," said Duggan. 

A memorandum of understanding was signed last October, and LaGrange has also publicly stated a new model would be in place this fall.

At a press conference on Tuesday, LaGrange could not say when a new payment model would take effect.

She did point out that the Alberta government has previously committed $257 million to stabilize primary care. 

On Tuesday, LaGrange also revealed plans for a new health agency responsible for primary care, as part of the Alberta government's push to improve health care coverage by breaking up Alberta Health Services into four separate agencies. 

Primary Care Alberta is expected to launch by Nov. 1.