On September 5 I asked the Minister of Health and Wellness why the Houston government won’t release an update to the list of people waiting for a Doctor or Nurse Practitioner:
SUSAN LEBLANC: Speaker, here we are embarking on yet another month without any update to the Need a Family Practice Registry. In June, when the list was last updated, 16.2 per cent of the population - more than 160,000 Nova Scotians - were on the waiting list, waiting to be attached to primary care. I can table that. This government can play around with the data all it wants, but the fact remains that the health care crisis in this province is worsening, and people want to know when things will get better. We didn't hear an answer from the Premier, so I'm going to ask the Minister of Health and Wellness.
To the Minister of Health and Wellness: Why won't this government release an update to the Need a Family Practice Registry?
HON. MICHELLE THOMPSON: As we did last Summer, we have undertaken a validation exercise. The people who are currently on the Need a Family Practice Registry are now being called to have their information validated. We want to understand whether they have already been attached, because the functionality of that list needs to be improved. We continue to do that. We're understanding their health status. We're understanding all the situations that lead them to be on that registry. It is moving from a list that was never looked at or managed to a registry that allows people to connect to primary care, to connect to chronic disease management and pre-natal care. It cannot be rushed, and we're doing a wonderful job through the Nova Scotia Health Authority. When those numbers are ready, they will be released.
SUSAN LEBLANC: Last Spring, the Premier indicated his government might scrap the Need a Family Practice Registry altogether. Now the Nova Scotia Health Authority has been reviewing the registry for months, trying to remove people from the list. The last time this government reviewed the registry, most were removed because of invalid health cards, and many others were mistakenly removed. Can the minister explain why this government is spending more time hiding and downplaying the list than it is working to attach people to care?
MICHELLE THOMPSON: I don't think calling all the individuals who are on that registry to find out more about their health care is hiding. I would say that is patient-centred care, and I'm very proud of the work that's happening around validating that list. What's important to understand about that list - to quote the honourable Dr. Jane Philpott again, "Nova Scotia leads the way on access to primary care, literally calling everyone on the registry to validate details, assess risk, provide interim measures as they recruit and build primary care teams with the end goal of a health home for every community. Other provinces take note."