The growing number of Nova Scotians who do not have a family doctor weren’t prescribed any magic cure at Thursday’s standing committee on health.  But the burgeoning virtual care and collaborative care health models were touted as ways forward to alleviate the province’s doctor pinch.  “One of the opportunities that we have right now is around virtual care,” Dr. Nicole Boutilier, vice-president of medicine with the Nova Scotia Health Authority, told the committee.

Most patients and doctors want to see virtual care made permanent, but its future in Nova Scotia remains in limbo.  Survey data compiled in a recent report to the province shows the vast majority of patients and doctors have been satisfied with virtual care since last March, when it was made billable for all doctors.

For residents of Nova Scotia looking for a primary care provider, the numbers can be staggering and discouraging.  A report released June 1 by the Nova Scotia Health Authority revealed that 66,404 residents of this province are on the Need a Family Practice registry. This includes 5,610 people in Queens and Lunenburg County.