Family doctors are overprescribing medications and tests, such as expensive CT and MRI scans, according to a study released Monday by the Health Council of Canada. Besides driving up costs in an already unmanageable provincial health budget, these practices are harming patients by exposing them to potentially serious drug side effects and unnecessary radiation.
Read more: Canada: Computerized records: Essential tool for health care
Of the total amount allocated to Infoway, $380 million of the new money will be directed to speed up the implementation of electronic medical record systems.
EMR systems are the gateway that will enable physicians and nurse practitioners to securely access vital patient information including diagnostic images, blood test results, drug histories and clinical reports.
Read more: Canada invests $500 million in electronic health record (EHR) systems
The five-year project to electronically secure the borders involves immigration, the RCMP and Canada Border Services Agency. Federal immigration spokesman Karen Shadd said under the program, applicants will have to provide fingerprints and a photograph as part of their digital visa application.
The council, an independent body created by federal and provincial governments to monitor the health system, released a report Monday that warns family doctors are facing increasingly complex demands but often lack the proper guidance to make the best decisions for patients.
Read more: Canada: Watchdog issues urgent call for electronic health records
"It cannot be fast-food medicine," said Yves Robert, secretary of the professional order representing about 20,000 physicians. "Oneminute consultations over the Internet would simply become a way to make more cash. A patient has to know that it's not always easy to practise medicine."
Read more: Canada: Quebec: Telemedicine isn't the best cure: doctors