Hi everyone,
Well, it’s been only 2 months since I became AFHTO President, so I thought this was a good time to provide an update on what I’ve been up to as this year comes to a close.
For starters, I get invited to a lot of meetings, which is to be expected considering we are in a global pandemic. Aside from taking advantage of the opportunity to keep our members informed of the latest happenings in primary care, I am excited to say that some great collaboration has been happening along the way.
When there seemed to be some misinformation about family physician offices not being accessible to patients, both in-person and virtually, AFHTO got together with the Ontario College of Family Physicians (OCFP) and the Ontario Medical Association’s Section of General & Family Practice (SGFP) to produce a 1 page document entitled “We’re Your Family Doctors – we’re here to care for you – whether by phone, video or in person”. This was shared widely with all our organizations as well as on social media and remains an ongoing advocacy tool to highlight the important role primary care played during the pandemic.
I’ve also been invited to participate on a committee representing primary care to help advise the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out in Ontario. The goals are to share up-to-date scientific information about these new vaccines, promote vaccine uptake and prevent vaccine hesitancy. It’s still early days, but hopefully in the next few months, primary care will be playing a huge roll in getting patients across Ontario to roll up their sleeves.
Our partners include the Alliance for Healthier Communities, Indigenous Primary Health Care Council, Nurse Practitioners’ Association of Ontario, Ontario College of Pharmacists, Ontario’s Academic Chairs of Family Medicine, the OCFP and the SGFP, and it’s going to take this kind of organization and collaboration to get the job done!
The AFHTO Board has also met a few times since our virtual Annual General Meeting to discuss our strategic plan and where we want to be in the next few years. We are also starting to discuss the pre-election platform issues that need further attention to support team-based care, and there will be a town hall to get input from members in early 2021 – so please stay tuned.
Finally, I have tried to promote good news stories about team-based primary care via my own Twitter handle – @Allan_k_grillMD. One of the biggest topics that received some attention was our efforts in giving flu shots, be it in our own offices, drive through clinics in parking lots, or collaborations with local public health partners.
We often spend all our time focused on the work itself, but self-promotion needs to remain a priority. Not only does it educate others about the power of primary care, but a little friendly competition between us never hurt anyone. So, I encourage you to tell your stories and use #PrimaryCareAlwaysThere to share the great work your teams are doing in your community.
It’s been a difficult and challenging year. Primary care continues to pivot during this pandemic to meet our patients’ needs, and colleagues are exhausted. We need a break, and the holiday season couldn’t have come more quickly. I hope everyone takes some time off over the next 2 weeks to recharge and reconnect with loved ones, even if it has to be virtual. It’s still a time of year to be thankful for what we have, and we can’t let the pandemic take even that away from us.
Being of the Jewish faith, I recently celebrated the holiday of Chanukah, where candles are lit on the menorah (or chanukiah) each night for 8 nights, adding 1 extra candle each time. The miracle connected to Chanukkah has to do with the small amount of oil needed to light the menorah. When the Maccabees (a group of Jewish warriors) reclaimed the Temple of Jerusalem in the 2nd century BCE after its destruction, only a small amount of oil was found. Despite the very low supply, it lasted 8 whole days.
To me, the holiday of Chanukkah represents hope. A hope that we should all have lives full of light and warmth. As we bring in 2021, I wish nothing more for all of you along with your friends and families. It is also fitting that we welcomed in another potential miracle and source of hope recently as Health Canada approved the first available COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer-BioNTech, with more to follow. Although most Canadians won’t get full access to a COVID-19 vaccine until probably Spring or Summer of 2021, there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel.
Thank you for your continued tireless efforts to support AFHTO, your patients and each other.
Dr. Allan Grill
President and Board Chair
Association of Family Health Teams of Ontario
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