Statement from the New Brunswick Medical Society concerning the release of the Green Party of New Brunswick’s Electoral Platform

New Brunswick’s doctors appreciate the Green Party’s focus on preventive and mental health, and the examination of environmental determinants of health. Their approach is holistic in that it examines advertising to children, taxation on junk food, and municipal planning in their health platform.

Their plan to build our capacity in primary health care is intriguing and is based on many of the same principles that promote concerning the development of care delivered to patients by teams of providers.

We appreciate the interest in increasing the capacity of Medical Officers of Health and hope this would mean the legislative protections we have previously sought for their independence.

A plan for women’s reproductive health is necessary and their platform addresses this theme in multiple ways.

We are still seeking a commitment from the Green Party and all parties to ensure that our patients’ priorities – that all New Brunswickers have a family doctor, no senior has to live in a hospital, and emergency wait times can and should be shorter – are reflected in their platforms.

Dr Lynn Hansen, MD FRCPC
President