Tuesday, June 29, 2004

SPOTLIGHT: Community health

Millions have no doctor

One out of every seven Canadians aged 12 and over did not have a family doctor in 2003, a finding that may have implications for the health care system.

A new survey shows that more than 3.6 million Canadians, about 15% of the total population, did not have a regular doctor last year. Of these people, 1.2 million were unable to find one, and 2.4 million had not even tried.

The inability of certain individuals to find a regular doctor could be putting pressure on the nation’s hospitals, the survey suggests.

When people without doctors do finally seek medical help, the odds that it will be in an emergency room are 3.5 times greater than for those who have a regular doctor.

Furthermore, women who cannot find a regular doctor are less likely to have received basic diagnostic services, such as mammograms and Pap smear tests.

Blood pressure

In the three provinces (Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Alberta) where questions about blood pressure were asked, those who could not find a doctor were less likely to have had their blood pressure checked.

In Ontario alone, the most populous province, 836,000 people, or 8% of the population, did not have a regular doctor.

In Quebec, the problem was worse – more than 1.6 million people did not have a doctor, almost one-quarter of the population. The lack of doctors was most acute in the Northwest Territories, where almost 30% of the population did not have a regular doctor.

The results are part of a comprehensive survey of more than 135,000 Canadians conducted between January and December 2003.

People living in rural Canada were slightly more likely than those in urban areas to have difficulty finding a regular medical doctor in 2003.

About 5.5% of individuals in rural areas had difficulty, compared with 4.5% in urban areas. This may reflect differences in the delivery of primary care in rural areas, including, for example, the use of nurse practitioners.

Not just a rural issue

The inability to find a regular doctor is not just a rural issue. Of the 1.2 million people who reported that they were unable to find a doctor, only about 273,000 lived in a rural area. An estimated 965,000 lived in urban Canada.

More than twice as many men as women reported that they had not looked for a regular doctor. Studies have shown that men consider it less important to have their health monitored over time.

Individuals who have not looked for a regular doctor were concentrated in the 20‑to‑34 age group, whereas the inability to find a doctor was less particular to the young.

Younger age groups possibly consider themselves to be healthy, and are occupied with educational pursuits or work and family responsibilities.

For more information, contact Media Relations (613-951-4636).

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© 2004, Statistics Canada.