President of the SMA, Dr. Allan Woo was in Melfort as part of his President's Tour. (Mat Barrett/northeastNOW Staff)

By Mat Barrett

SMA President's Tour

Physician health one of many topics as SMA President’s Tour stops in Melfort

Oct 9, 2019 | 9:39 AM

Physicians from around the northeast, mainly the old Kelsey Trail Health Region, were in Melfort on Tuesday, Oct. 8 as the President of the Saskatchewan Medical Association (SMA) was in Melfort for stop nine in his 11 stop Presidents Tour.

Last year, Dr. Allan Woo was the Vice President of the SMA, but now holds the President title. He said with the new Saskatchewan Health Authority being just 21 months old, it’s still an adjustment process, something they talk about during the tour.

“We’re still feeling things out,” Woo told northeastNOW. “We’re still trying to figure out our area leads, our department leads, our division leads as part of our structure for physician leadership.”

He said they want to hear from everyone about how the Health Authority amalgamation is affecting everyone. Woo added that the SMA still fully supports physician leadership as part of the reorganization stating it’s important for the direction long-term.

Woo said on top of the adjustments with the Saskatchewan Health Authority, they talk about bylaws, negotiations with the provincial government, patient portal, communication, financial issues, and more.

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Meanwhile, one big issue that is consistent throughout all the tour stops is physician health. Woo said they want to make sure every physician is healthy and well taken care of. He added that they want to hear what is bothering them or giving them some angst. Woo said one thing still remains the same though.

“Every physician understands that’s the ultimate goal,” he said. “What’s the best way to take care of our patients and the community at large.”

After the tour has completed, Woo said they begin to look at the concerns of the physicians across Saskatchewan with the SMA board.

“We discuss what we’ve heard and how we want to go forward with some of these issues,” Woo said. “We’re in greater communication with the Ministry of Health and the Health Authority. They’ve been very open to the dialogue, so I think that’s one thing that’s still maintained.”

Woo’s next stop on the President’s Tour is Prince Albert on Oct. 9. That is followed by his final stop in La Ronge on Oct. 15.

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mat.barrett@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @matbarrett6