Quebec to tighten obligations for family medicine groups [Video]

Family medicine groups (FMG) will have to set aside a minimum number of spots for patients with minor health problems who receive a referral from an emergency department.

This is one of the new obligations being imposed on FMGs by Quebec’s health ministry as part of a new program unveiled on Wednesday.

Quebec says it believes that setting aside time slots for patients who visit an emergency room with minor health problems will enable them to be cared for more quickly.

In addition, up to 20 per cent of FMG annual funding will be conditional on several factors, like attendance rate, which measures how easily a patient can get an appointment with their doctor, and the number of referral slots offered by primary care physicians and nurse practitioners.

At the same time, FMGs are expected to have more leeway to hire their own human resources.

The changes to the funding …