Healthy Alberta Communities
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT the AUMA 2010 General Assembly adopt the 2010 Healthy Alberta Communities Policy Paper.
WHEREAS municipal governments play a role in building healthy Alberta communities, especially in the municipal core function areas of transportation, recreation and parks, and land use planning;
WHEREAS municipal governments work hard, every day, to ensure safe and viable communities with a high quality of life for residents;
WHEREAS the Government of Alberta is currently developing new health legislation in which it is believed that the achievement of health outcomes for Alberta will be successful through support for healthy communities; and
WHEREAS at its meeting of September 23, 2010, the AUMA Board adopted the 2010 Healthy Alberta Communities Policy Paper and directed that it be forwarded to the 2010 Convention for approval.
Jun 29, 2011 - Alberta Health and Wellness
As the province moves forward with the transition of ambulance service, AUMA will be included as a stakeholder on initiatives that may impact your member municipalities.
With respect to recruitment and retention of physicians and medical professionals, our Government is committed to providing all Albertans with quality, accessible and sustainable health care, and we are taking steps to ensure Alberta has enough doctors.
Physicians are self-employed and can practice where they wish. While the Government of Alberta does not place restrictions on the location of a physician’s practice, the Ministry of Health and Wellness has programs that encourage physician’s practice, the Ministry of Health and Wellness has programs that encourage physicians to practice in communities where there is a shortage. The Rural, Remote and Northern Program is a direct response to issues faced by areas of the province where it is difficult to recruit and retain physicians, or where practice costs have significantly increased.
The Alberta Rural Physician Action Plan (RPAP) is another key provincial initiative that provides programs to support education, recruitment and retention of rural physicians in our province. RPAP offers return-for-service bursaries that cover medical students’ full tuition costs if they agree to work in certain areas of the province for a set period of time upon graduation. RPAP also works closely with communities and Alberta Health Services (AHS) to support rural physician recruitment efforts. Should you wish to contact RPAP for support, for example, forming and developing a physician recruitment and retention committee, you may contact RPAP Alberta-RPAP [at] rpap.ab.ca (by e-mail) or by phone at 780-423-9911.
Physician recruitment is a shared responsibility of the communities, community physicians, AHS and Government. Communities need to work proactively with AHS and provincial programs such as RPAP in their recruitment and retention efforts. AHS has established 12 Health Advisory Councils to bring community perspectives to its strategic planning process. For more information about the health Advisory Councils, please contact Community Engagement, AHS community.engagement [at] albertahealthservices.ca (by email) or by phone toll-free at 1-877-275-8830.
AUMA considers this response.
AUMA will send a letter to the Minister to thank him for the response and acknowledge the rural physician program. The letter will also state that incentives are not sufficient as in smaller/remote communities, local governments often must fund incentives to attract and retain health care professionals.
Recommendations in the policy paper will continue to inform the development of the Local Matters Campaign particularly the recommendation that “the GoA visit AUMA’s proposal for a formalized Provincial-Municipal Sustainability Partnership Agreement.”