Canadian Medical Association dissolves General Council, the parliament of Canadian medicine.

Public

Dr Z. Essak, MD - Vancouver BC - September 10, 2018

What a year it's been for the Canadian Medical Association.

First, just one year ago in August 2017, the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) dropped the word 'physician' from its vision and mission statements, much to the surprise of many doctors across the country leaving them feeling abandoned.

Then, at the beginning of June 2018, the CMA sold the trust of doctors in MD Financial to the Bank of Nova Scotia for nearly C$2.6 billion. Now in August 2018, after 151 years, the CMA has dissolved the General Council, the parliament of Canadian medicine, as stated in the constitution itself.

Are these changes forward looking and preparing for the future or eroding the work, achievements and structures of the medical profession? Is direct physician input being replaced by filtered input that serves programs and bureaucracy?

Dr. Eric Cadesky, president of DoctorsOf BC, in his recent blog wrote: "In past years, the CMA’s General Council meeting (GC) – the medical parliament of Canada – focused on doctors debating motions on evolving and important issues including physician health, mandatory vaccination, medical assistance in dying, cannabis and climate change."

"The CMA this year instead organized a two-day Health Summit followed by the CMA’s Annual General Meeting and a pared-down GC without motions; many felt there was not enough time to debate the proposed changes to CMA governance and the Code of Ethics and Professionalism."

The Canadian Medical Association is as old as Canada itself, founded in 1867 just three months after the birth of Canada, with the purpose to have a strong voice for the medical profession and to speak out for the health of Canadians.

When the Canadian Medical Association was created it was done so through the efforts of Dr. Sir Charles Tupper, who later became Prime Minister of Canada, in a rare and unique way, not as a typical society and certainly not a corporation. It was created with Royal consent in the parliamentary tradition of a representative democracy.

How can it be that General Council is dissolved when it is the 'supreme policy-making body' of the CMA, responsible for providing high-level policy guidance and direction to the organization in general and the board of directors in particular?

What replaces General Council? Some new buzz words: A member engagement model and Communities of Interest (COI). More event planning and marketing? Very likely it won't be driven by direct doctor input but filtered to suit the growth of programs and bureaucracy.

The dissolving of General Council, the parliament of Canadian medicine, comes on the heels of the shocking sale of MD Financial in June to the Bank of Nova Scotia for nearly C$2.6 billion.

MD Financial was in a unique position of trust. As an arm of the CMA, it was perceived by physicians to have their personal interests at heart with no conflict of interest. So much so, that MD Financial encouraged doctors to consider placing their own estate in the trust of MD Financial and, upon their death, MD Financial would become the trustee of their estate. Will these agreements be transferred to the Bank of Nova Scotia? Even the thought of it raised enough concern for some doctors to stop their own estate planning in its tracks.

It was also this unique position of trust that many busy doctors and their families relied on when deciding to use MD Financial for investment and other services. Now, with the sale to Bank of Nova Scotia to be completed this fall, it raises uncertainty and questions for doctors and their families.

Who is in charge of the CMA? Has the association been hijacked by long-time Board directors overly influenced by staff, event planners and marketeers? Dr. Brian Brodie has been on the CMA Board since 2010 and chair since 2013, along with a cohort of other long-time directors.

Are these so-called medical leaders just smooth-talking individuals with ambition; first in medical politics, riding the gravy train of political appointments, with some hoping to spring to provincial or federal politics? Communicating only 'talking points' created by others and giving lip service to questions while controlling the agenda? What do they really deliver?

Are young doctors and the new leaders going to stand by and allow this to continue - to be swept away by those who sit on the Board, dismantling transparency and accountability?

Or will they insist on regaining a strong voice for the medical profession and to speak out for the health of Canadians, the founding purpose of the Canadian Medical Association?

How will the damage be undone? How will the medical profession rebuild itself?

Weblinks

DoctorsOfBC President's blog 2018 CMA

CMA's new mission and vision statements rankle some members | CMAJ News

How is it possible that the word ‘physician’ doesn’t appear in either the vision statement or the mission statement of the national association that represents Canadian physicians?

2018 Annual meeting of the Canadian Medical Association

The 151st meeting of the CMA.
General Council is expected to wind down in 2018 as we transition from a representative model to a member engagement model: PDF, https://www.cma.ca/Assets/assets-library/document/en/about-us/gc2018/agm...

CMA phasing out annual General Council meeting | CMAJ News

... The final General Council—and the inaugural Health Summit—will be held Aug. 20–22 in Winnipeg.

Dr. Brian Brodie, chair of the CMA board of directors, said the move is aimed at making the association more responsive to members and better able to encompass the breadth of what contributes to a healthy population. “We want to move from debate to dialogue, conservative to modern, and exclusive to inclusive,” he said.

... Dr. Trina Larsen Soles “The provincial associations are asking, ‘Where do we fit in?’ General Council was our conduit to CMA,” she said. “There’s a huge experiment in progress, and it is either going to be a resounding success or total failure. I’m hoping for the former.”

Scotiabank strikes $2.6-billion deal for MD Financial - The Globe and Mail

Brian David Brodie : Executive Profile & Biography - Bloomberg

Canadian Medical Association - Wikipedia

“The Board of directors is the executive authority of the CMA. The Board is responsible for managing CMA affairs in accordance with the policies established by the CMA General Council. General Council is the governing body and legislative authority of the CMA. It's responsible for providing high-level policy guidance and direction to the organization in general and the board of directors in particular.”