SMA News Digest (Summer 2014): V54, I2 | Page 4

PRESIDENT’S NOTE APPROPRIATENESS AND CHOOSING wisely Dear colleagues, inally, summer has arrived in Saskatchewan! After enduring a long winter and a cold, wet spring, hopefully some nice, warm weather will be here for a while. F There won’t be much time to enjoy the weather at the SMA, as we have a lot to accomplish this summer. One of the top priorities for the SMA over the next year is reaching a new feefor-service agreement. Overhead costs such as staff wages and lease payments have gone up significantly the last few years, posing a significant challenge for physicians in private practice. As Saskatchewan grows, the costs of running a business rise. My group, Saskatoon East Family Physicians, recently experienced this first-hand when we were forced to move from our previous location due to a significant increase in our rent. We were lucky to find a great new space at a more reasonable rate, but in many communities where office space is sparse, physicians are forced to absorb the higher costs. Also there are large costs associated with the tenant improvements and moving during such a transition. The SMA is seeking recognition of these rising costs. We are also exploring new avenues to promote teambased care to ensure that physicians 2 SMA NEWS DIGEST | SUMMER 2014 are working to their optimal scope of practice while being appropriately remunerated so that patients have the access to family physicians they need. Our negotiating team, led by Dr. Sridhar, is working hard to ensure feefor-service physicians have an agreement that will meet our needs and provide the foundation for physician recruitment and retention. In the interim, we continue to work under the last agreement, which expired March 31, 2013. The SMA ha ́