Do people with disabilities have difficulty finding a family physician?

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Primary Care Medicine
• Disability Studies

Background:

• Primary care access is crucial, yet many Canadians lack a family physician, with few practices accepting new patients.
• Shortages of family physicians create barriers to care, particularly for vulnerable populations.
• The study investigates potential disparities in primary care access for individuals with disabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if people with disabilities experience greater difficulty obtaining a family physician compared to the general population.
• To explore the challenges faced by Health Care Connect (HCC) staff when placing patients with disabilities.
• To analyze wait times and success rates for disabled individuals seeking primary care through HCC.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing data from Health Care Connect (HCC), a government-funded agency in Ontario, Canada.
• Supplementing HCC data with qualitative interviews with agency staff.
• Analyzing average wait times and placement success rates for patients with disabilities.

Main Results:

• Disabled registrants experienced only slight disadvantages in wait times to secure a family physician.
• Overall success rates for placing disabled patients were comparable to non-disabled individuals.
• HCC staff reported significant challenges in the process of placing patients with disabilities.

Conclusions:

• While wait times and success rates are comparable, systemic challenges persist in primary care access for people with disabilities.
• Further investigation into the specific barriers faced by agency staff is warranted.
• Ensuring equitable access to primary care for all citizens, including those with disabilities, remains a critical health policy goal.