Dear members,
One of the responsibilities of being president is representing the challenges and concerns of physicians on the national stage. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to appear in front of the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology in their study of the government’s response to COVID-19.
In my remarks, I emphasized the great risks physicians have been taking — and continue to take — to care for Canadians, and called for caution as governments across the country begin to lift public health restrictions. Governments must continue to keep physicians and other health care workers protected, by ensuring adequate supplies of PPE are available, among other measures to support the profession.
I stressed that it’s critical to build on what we’ve learned through the pandemic to make much-needed improvements to our health care system – for example, continuing to scale up virtual care and revamping our long-term care sector.
I’ll continue to look for more opportunities to highlight your concerns with government and press for action.
Financial impacts of COVID-19
We know COVID-19 has had serious financial implications for many physicians’ practices and training. This has been compounded by the fact that many have found themselves ineligible for federal support programs.
We’re currently preparing a brief to the federal government to highlight your unique financial challenges and to recommend additional measures to ensure adequate support. As part of this effort, we want to know more about your experiences trying to access federal programs; please check your inbox tomorrow for a survey invitation from the CMA on this issue.
Recently published member resources
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Learn about strategies to decrease the impact of moral distress and to feel more in control when these feelings resurface: from calming your nervous system to freeing yourself from sticky thoughts to reconnecting with your values.
- CMAJ continues to share editorials, research, articles and more on COVID-19, and the expert librarians at Joule continue to update their list of clinical resources on the virus.
As a reminder, please don’t hesitate to contact us with your questions or suggestions related to COVID-19. Our Member Service Centre can be reached at memberservicecentre@cma.ca or toll-free at 1-888-855-2555 (weekdays from 8 am to 8 pm EDT).
With my sincere appreciation for all your work,
Dr. Sandy Buchman