Alberta's first PCN is 5 years old!

It is five years ago this month that Edmonton Southside Primary Care Network (PCN) opened its doors, becoming the first Network in an initiative that today has grown to include 33 PCNs. Collectively these Networks provide care to almost two-thirds of Albertans and are working to not only improve access to primary care services but also improve coordination of care.

“Primary Care Networks have only been around for five years and while they continue to evolve, we’re already seeing some real success stories,” says Dr. Gerry Prince, a family physician with the Palliser PCN in the Medicine Hat area and co-chair of the Primary Care Initiative Committee tasked with leading the development of PCNs in Alberta. “By bringing together teams of health professionals in family doctors’ offices or PCN community clinics, we’re better able to support patients in meeting their primary health care needs and getting the right care to patients at the right time.”

It’s this team approach that has helped make PCNs so successful as patients in PCNs now have far greater access to a team of experts who can better meet their needs.
To mark the anniversary, a celebration was held in Edmonton at the Heritage Medical Clinic, the very site of the grand opening of the Edmonton Southside PCN five years prior. The Minister of Alberta Health and Wellness, Gene Zwozdesky along with representatives from the AMA, AHS and the PCN spoke at the event and the anniversary was covered by several media outlets.