BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“We’re not accepting new patients.” Again.

You throw your head back against the cushions, a wave of despair washing over you. It feels like you have been abandoned by the system.

You hold up your prescription bottle. “This is about to run out. I called every clinic in the area, and no one’s taking new patients. That’s ridiculous. How am I supposed to get this filled? I should try those phone appointments again. At least it saves the drive. I know, but I worry about the quality of care. You know how important those in-person check-ups are. With my cancer history and family history of heart disease, preventative care is crucial. I can’t afford any interruptions in my care. Walk-in clinics are just not an option.”

“This is supposed to be a first-world country. How can we not have access to basic healthcare?”

Every region of Ontario is experiencing a shortage of family doctors, and the crisis is only going to get worse if the provincial government doesn’t take immediate action

In February of 2024, a group of family physicians held a meeting to talk about alternative career paths, because they determined that the practice of family medicine is not sustainable in Ontario. The meeting was intended also to draw attention to what doctors believe is lack of goodwill by the health ministry in its negotiations with the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) for what was going to be the next physician services agreement, which determines how much money physicians can bill the government for providing care under OHIP.

Dr. Ramsey Hijazi, founder of the Ontario Union of Family Physicians, a group of more than 1,700 doctors, said the organization had planned a mass movement of doctors to take a “Coordinated day off” that Monday, but decided to hold a virtual meeting instead to avoid any impact on patient care. About 150 family doctors took part in the career summit.

After the meeting, the doctors talked about the possibility of transitioning out of family medicine into other fields, such as hospital, or cosmetic medicine.

Readers. Community. News like this should be frightening to you. In many ways, it is important to question the fact that we do live in a first-world country, and many of you do not have access to basic health care.

A group of concerned citizens in Ontario are urging the government to address the critical issue of defunding family medicine. It is imperative to recognize that family doctors are not just healthcare professionals, but also small business owners who face significant financial challenges due to inadequate funding.

Family doctors in Ontario are paid by the government through funding intended to cover various expenses such as: rent, staff salaries, nursing services, electronic medical records, computers, phone bills, utilities, and more. However, this funding has remained stagnant for far too long and has failed to keep up with rising costs and inflation. As a result, family doctors struggle to meet their basic operational expenses.

Let’s shed light on this issue further:

Financial Burden:  The average cost of running a single doctor’s practice exceeds $100,000 per year.  (Source: Ontario Medical Association)

Inadequate Compensation:  Unlike salaried professionals, or employees who receive benefits such as: 1-yr maternity leaves, pensions, sick leave, vacation pay, health and dental benefits from their employers, family doctors do not have access to these benefits despite their crucial role in our healthcare system.

Uncompensated Workload:  Family doctors provide up to 20 hrs/wk of UNPAID administrative work to manage: incoming results, bloodwork, diagnostic imaging – x ray, CT, MRI reports, pharmacy prescription requests, specialists’ requests and notifications, without receiving any additional compensation. (Source: Ontario College of Family Physicians)

Recruitment Challenges:  The above financial constraints faced by family doctors discourages new graduates from entering primary care practice. (Source: Canadian Medical Association).  The government can increase medical school spots, but in the last decade, 20% FEWER medical students are choosing Family Medicine. (Source: CARMS statistics https://www.carms.ca/data-reports/r1-data-reports/r-1-match-interactive-data/

Retention Challenges:  Once Family Physicians finish their training, FEWER family medicine graduates are choosing to ACTUALLY PRACTICE Family Medicine.  Choosing instead to work in: the ER, hospital, focused areas – sports medicine, or cosmetics clinics, or alternative careers such as working for the federal government, or consulting.  These positions often pay much better, do not have unpaid administrative burden, and require much less business responsibilities.

Up to 47% of physicians (including family doctors and specialists) polled by Statistics Canada stated they planned on leaving the profession within the next five years. (Source: Statistics Canada https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220603/cg-a002-eng.htm

This does not take into account those planning to retire within the next five years. Many have already begun leaving, a phenomenon known as #DOCXIT

It is essential for our government representatives to take immediate action towards fair compensation for family doctors in order to maintain a robust primary care system that serves all Ontarians effectively.

These concerned citizens have started a petition, and in signing this petition, they are demanding that the government:

• Increase funding for family doctors to cover rising operational costs and inflation.
• Provide fair compensation packages, including access to pensions, health benefits, and paid sick time.
• Recognize the additional workload of family doctors by compensating them for administrative burden.
• Implement measures to attract and retain new graduates into primary care practice in Ontario.

It is high time we value the dedication and hard work of our family doctors who play a vital role in keeping our communities healthy. Let us stand together to ensure they receive fair compensation that reflects their contributions.

36,978 have signed the Ontario Union of Family Physicians’ petition.

Let’s get to 50,000!

Burlington, Ontario – December 2024 – A1 Cash & Carry is excited to announce the opening of its newest location in Burlington, Ontario. This marks the 8th

wholesale store in its growing footprint across Ontario. The store opened its doors to hundreds of customers on November 29th and has received an overwhelming response from the community of Burlington. This location is wholesale only and is focused on serving restaurants and other food businesses with the exceptional service and value A1 Cash & Carry is known for.

Conveniently located at 3495 North Service Road, at the intersection of Queen Elizabeth Way & Walkers Line. This 32,000 square foot location is a brand-new built-to-suit building that features, a protein cooler, dairy cooler, produce cooler and freezer areas. This location stocks over 5,000 SKUs across all of A1 Cash and Carry’s product categories.

With over 26 years of experience in the restaurant wholesale industry, A1 Cash & Carry has mastered the art of providing a one-stop-shop experience for it’s customers. Like all A1 stores the new Burlington store offers competitive pricing, quality products, and a deep understanding of what restaurant owners need to thrive.

Known for its reliable delivery service, A1 Cash & Carry provides free delivery for orders over $550 and ensures timely service to Burlington and surrounding areas every Wednesday. Additionally, delivery through Instacart offers flexibility for non-business customers, broadening accessibility to A1 Cash & Carry’s extensive product range.

“This new store is a celebration of our commitment to Ontario’s restaurant community, and we are excited to bring even more value and innovation in the coming year,” said Fahmad Parvaiz, COO.

A1 Cash & Carry extends heartfelt gratitude to its loyal customers for their trust and partnership over the years. Their support has been the foundation of the company’s exponential growth and ongoing success.

Details about the Burlington Store

• Location: 3495 North Service Road QEW & Walkers Line, Burlington, ON L7N 3G2
• 32,000 Square Foot Location
• 5,000 + Products in Stock
• A1 Employs over 350 employees, this location will add 12-15 jobs in the Halton Region
• Hours: Open 7 Days a Week Monday – Friday 8:30am – 5:30pm Saturday 8:30am – 4:30pm Sunday 9:00am – 4:00pm

For more information about A1 Cash & Carry and its Burlington location, please visit website or check out our Instagram.

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

The work of Innocence Canada, formerly known as the Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC) has made a significant difference on the Canadian legal scene. According to the website: www.innocencecanada.com the organization was launched in February 1993 as an extension of the Justice for Guy Morin Committee, which was established in 1993 after he was wrongfully convicted. AIDWYC received widespread media attention due to the work of Rubin “Hurricane” Carter who served as its founding Executive Director for over ten years. Carter served nineteen years for a wrongful conviction in a New Jersey prison and was subsequently released.

It was in October 2016 that AIDWYC rebranded as Innocence Canada with a new logo adorn with tally marks to coincide with each exoneration. In a press release issued by Innocence Canada on Thursday, December 12^th, 2024, details were announced regarding the passage of Bill C-40. It is titled, “The Miscarriage of Justice Act “and is also known as “David and Joyce Milgaard’s Law.”

The press release notes, “It makes drastic changes to the Criminal Code and creates a new tribunal or commission to address all claims of wrongful conviction. It eliminates our present Ministerial Review process that has for more than 100 years been the only resort for the wrongly convicted.”

In the press release, David’s sister, Susan Milgaard states, “My mother and my brother will be looking down on us and celebrating this new law. I am very grateful it is named after them. They did so much to get this law passed, because they were dedicated to the cause of all the innocent people in prison who had no good place to seek justice. Now they will have a place to go.”

James Lockyear of Innocence Canada states, “Today is a great day for all those wrongfully convicted. Innocence Canada has been advocating for this law for more than 30 years. It will bring Canada in line with other countries that already have a similar commission and be a change for the wrongly convicted and the Canadian criminal justice system.”

It was in 2009 that David Milgaard was wrongfully convicted of the murder in the rape and death of Gail Miller. She was a nursing student at the time. Miller spent 23 years in prison as a sentence. However, in 1992 he was freed and found innocent. Since then, Milgard has actively engaged in advocacy for those who are wrongfully convicted and has worked hard for the establishment of an independent to review cases of wrongful convictions.

The fact that David and his mother, Joyce Milgaard are both deceased and not present to celebrate this day is unfortunate. Milgaard’s sister, Susan states, “It didn’t take a village, it took a country to achieve what we have and thank God for Canada because we’ve done it.”

An independent commission will be established to review potential wrongful convictions rather than the Minister of Justice. Arif Virani, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada states, “It is Important that this legislation includes money, personnel, and legal aid funding.”

Ron Dalton of Innocence Canada states, “We’re currently working on 130 cases in our office, and we only have the resources to look at homicide cases.”

A press release was issued on Wednesday, December 18^th, by the Department of Justice Canada to highlight the fact that the David and Joyce Milgaard’s Law received royal assent. Innocence Canada states, “All of us at Innocence Canada are delighted by the passage of David and Joyce Melgaard’s Law, which creates a new and independent body of experts to address future claims of wrongful conviction. Justice Minister Arid Virani and his predecessor, David Lametti, deserve great credit for this ground-breaking legislation which will make for an enormous improvement to our criminal justice system.”

The press release outlines some of the purposes of the new independent commission. It notes that it will not be an alternative to the courts. In general, applicants will first need to exhaust their rights of appeal before requesting a miscarriage of justice review by the commission. Furthermore, it “will not decide whether an applicant is guilty, or innocent, and there will be a dedicated victim services coordinator position to support victims and assist with the development of procedural policies especially as it relates to victim notification and participation in a manner consistent with the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights.