In the wake of recent unhappy remarks by Saskatchewan family doctors as to how the Sask Party government has approached the COVID-19 pandemic, NDP leader Ryan Meili, himself a family physician, has called on the province to try and stop the exodus of Saskatchewan physicians and create a health workforce strategy.

Meili says the numbers are alarming, citing statistics that show that between 2018 and 2021, there were 82 fewer family doctors actively practicing in Saskatchewan. That translates to an eight per cent decrease, a figure Meili says rises to 11 per cent less over those three years in rural Saskatchewan. The out-going opposition leader wants the Sask Party government to immediately plan for the recruitment and retention of family doctors and other medical professionals.

In response, the Deputy Chief of Staff for Executive Council reported in an email that the opposition provided numbers of active physicians versus licensed physicians, which isn’t indicative of practice. Active physicians are licensed physicians who receive $60,000 or more in fee-for-service payments during the year. Licensed physicians are are actively practicing, but includes all physicians not on a fee-for-service contract, such as salaried physicians.

Ministry of Health data indicates the number of licensed physicians increased 56 per cent between 2007 and 2021.