Health P.E.I. 'made it harder for me to do the work that I love,' says departing family doctor

A longtime family doctor in Summerside says she is leaving the province, and it all comes down to how Health P.E.I. is treating family physicians.

Dr. Heather Austin, who has practised family medicine in Summerside since 2011, announced she will close her practice and move back to Nova Scotia by the summer of 2028.

In a public letter, she described the decision as one made “with significant deliberation and heartache.” Over the past 18 months, she wrote, working in P.E.I.’s health-care system has become increasingly difficult. She said she cannot continue working for a health authority that treats her and her colleagues “with such ignorant disrespect.”

“Being a family physician is a choice. We go into this work to provide service to the population, and we do put our heart and soul into the work that we do. We care about our patients,” Austin told CBC News on Monday.

“The biggest impact is how it has made it harder for me to do the work that I love to do.”

Austin is one of three P.E.I. doctors who have recently informed Health P.E.I. they are leaving their practices.

CBC News requested an interview with Health P.E.I., which instead sent a statement from Chief Medical Officer Dr. Johan Viljoen. 

“To strengthen collaboration, the Health P.E.I. board is establishing an advisory panel to hear directly from primary care providers,” the statement reads.

“Health P.E.I. is working under the agreement approved by the Medical Society of P.E.I. and respects its role representing physicians, while continuing to listen and improve how the agreement is implemented.”

In a separate statement, Health P.E.I.'s board of directors said it recognizes the importance of maintaining open dialogue as implementation of the Physician Services Agreement (PSA) — the province's contract with doctors — continues. 

It said the advisory panel would convene by the end of March and conclude by Aug. 31, and will be made up of “Health P.E.I. publicly-appointed board members.”

The Physician Services Agreement was signed in 2024 by the Department of Health, Health P.E.I. and the Medical Society of P.E.I. 

Austin said doctors were initially optimistic, calling the PSA “an excellent document.” But she said the issue is not the agreement itself, it’s how Health P.E.I. has implemented it.

She said the intention was for the three parties to roll the agreement out collaboratively, but Health P.E.I. has instead acted as though it’s the “sole proprietor.”