Ontario Association of Cardiologists
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Our History
    • Mission, Values & Goals
    • Initiatives & Successes
    • President’s Message
    • Board of Directors
  • Understanding Cardiology
    • Investing in Cardiology
    • Video Stories
      • Why the OAC Exists
      • Your Heart is Amazing!
      • Follow the Patient
      • A Day in the Life
      • A Patient’s Perspective
      • Cardiologists Add Value
      • Coalition of Ontario Doctors
  • Membership
    • Membership Benefits
    • Sign-ups and Renewals
  • News
  • Resources
    • Definitions & Acronyms
    • Community Forums
    • Webinars
    • Echo Accreditation
    • Choosing Wisely Canada Campaign
    • Brand & Logo Guidelines
  • Contact Us
  • Sign In
    • Sign In
    • My Account

Davies: Making virtual visits a permanent part of Ontario health care is good. But it must be done right

Davies: Making virtual visits a permanent part of Ontario health care is good. But it must be done right

March 24, 2022

The Ontario Medical Association and the Ministry of Health have proposed a new Physician Services Agreement and physicians are now voting on the proposal. There are important flaws, however.

Opinion | Ottawa Citizen | March 24, 2022 | https://bit.ly/3ICdrPS

Over the past two years, one of the ways COVID-19 affected health care was to reduce access to in-person visits with physicians. This was done to help limit the spread of COVID but had the unintended side effect of jeopardizing the care of non-COVID medical conditions. Ontario’s physicians identified and rose to this challenge, embracing virtual care as a way of providing quality care without in-person contact.

This strategy proved very effective. While only 1.3 per cent of Ontario residents had participated in virtual care prior to the pandemic, by the second quarter of 2020 utilization had exploded to 29.2 per cent, with 85.9 per cent of Ontario physicians participating. This activity was supported by the Ministry of Health via the addition of temporary fee codes.

Two years of hands-on experience have shown that virtual care can also have a tremendous, positive impact on patients and their families beyond COVID. Most medical visits can be effectively conducted virtually without a decrease in the quality of care. Virtual care avoids the tremendous time loss, inconvenience and expense experienced by patients and their families that is associated with in-person visits.

We also learned that most virtual visits could be effectively conducted by telephone alone and that the addition of video added surprisingly little medical value. Also, while video was relatively easy to implement on the physician’s side, it was often a technological challenge and hassle for patients. As a result, 91.2 per cent of virtual visits conducted in Ontario in 2020 were done by telephone alone, with overwhelmingly positive feedback from our patients.

Today, we are at an important crossroad. The Ontario Medical Association and the Ministry of Health have proposed a new Physician Services Agreement (PSA) that will make virtual care a permanent part of Ontario’s health-care landscape. All Ontario physicians are voting on this proposed agreement from March 22 to 27.

While much of it is worthy of support, a close examination of the virtual care provisions reveals a fatal flaw. Specifically, these provisions require that all virtual care patient consultations be done by videoconferencing, not by telephone. These provisions also significantly reduce the already very low fees paid for follow-up visits if they are conducted by telephone.

Taken together, these important details will dramatically limit access to virtual care services for patients without access to video conferencing technology. This includes some of Ontario’s most vulnerable populations: the elderly who are uncomfortable with this technology; those who cannot afford it; and those who live in rural and remote areas that have insufficient internet access or bandwidth to support it.

Virtual care should not compromise the standard of care, nor should it be conducted in circumstances where a virtual visit will not be equivalent to an in-person visit. Accordingly, physicians providing telephone care must also be able to provide video care at the patient’s discretion, and in-person care whenever it is medically necessary or the patient’s preference.

When done under these guidelines, the amount of expertise, work and physician time that goes into a telephone visit is at least equivalent to a video or in-person visit. Experience has shown that patients are very comfortable speaking at length with their physician on the phone and often involve their families in these visits. As a result, telephone visits often take the physician more time than an equivalent in-person visit.

Virtual care, when conducted properly, offers tremendous benefits to patients in terms of time saved and expenses avoided. The proposed PSA correctly makes virtual care a permanent part of Ontario health care, but important details are wrong and need to be made right so that all of Ontario’s patients will benefit. For this reason, the OMA Section on Cardiology Executive and the Board of the Ontario Association of Cardiologists call on all doctors in Ontario to reject the proposed PSA, then work together to get it right.
 
Dr. Richard Davies is a practising cardiologist in Ottawa, vice-chair of the OMA Section of Cardiology, and a board member of the Ontario Association of Cardiologists.

For more information, contact:

Ontario Association of Cardiologists
34 Eglinton Ave. West, Suite 410
Toronto, Ontario
M4R 2H6
Tel: 416-487-0054
E-mail: [email protected]

Share this:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email to a Friend

Related News

Cardiac Patient Access to Virtual Care Services in Ontario Threatened Effective October 1, 2022
May 1, 2022 by Tim Holman
Dr. Joel Niznick (1954-2022)
April 11, 2022 by Tim Holman
Davies: Making virtual visits a permanent part of Ontario health care is good. But it must be done right
March 24, 2022 by Tim Holman
Latest Tweets
  • RT @PMunkCardiacCtr: For #WorldHeartDay Dr. Dinesh Thavendiranathan reminds us why the heart is so important! Show us how you take care… https://t.co/iTCIBwXU3S

    September 29, 2021RetweetFavorite

  • RT @HeartInstitute: A must-read article shining a light on #SCAD in @besthealthmag! // Un excellent article qui met en lumière la #DSAC… https://t.co/ZJWa5X0nMc

    August 20, 2021RetweetFavorite

  • Congratulations Dr. Sanfilippo! twitter.com/SEAMOKingston/stat…

    July 16, 2021RetweetFavorite

  • Interesting and valuable insights provided by @OntHeartDocs member Dr. Beth Abramson: WIC International Perspective… twitter.com/i/web/status/14121…

    July 05, 2021RetweetFavorite

  • RT @Dr_Pandey_Heart: #cbridge .@SCC_CCS .@OntHeartDocs strongly recommends all eligible Canadians to get the #COVID19Vaccine as soon as… https://t.co/I4r1XgEFeQ

    June 14, 2021RetweetFavorite

Protect, Maintain & Improve Cardiac Care in Ontario. Become a Member

Already a Member? Sign In

34 Eglinton Ave. West, Suite 410
Toronto, Ontario M4R 2H6

Tel: (416) 487-0054
Toll-Free: (877) 504-1239

E-mail: [email protected]

Quick Links
  • Contact Us
  • Mission, Values & Goals
  • Sign-ups and Renewals
  • Who We Are
  • Why the OAC Exists
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Use
Find Us on Social Media

Copyright © Ontario Association of Cardiologists. All rights reserved.