The Doctor Dilemma

The Doctor Dilemma provides a timely discussion of policy issues in five key areas of physician-related public policy in Ontario: physician payment schemes, regulation of physician numbers and distribution, monitoring of the quality of medical care, the role of physicians in hospitals, and the regulation of new medical technologies. Shortt defines the scope of the problems, clarifies the focus of the debate, identifies the constraints on policy formation, and discusses the policy options available. The author accepts the inevitability of substantial change to the health care system and the way practitioners work but believes that such change can ultimately lead to a better system of health care in Ontario. His aim is to persuade fellow doctors not to oppose change but rather to inform policy makers of what areas of physician activity legitimately demand intervention and how best to make changes. The Doctor Dilemma will be of tremendous interest to physicians and health care professionals, administrators, and policy makers across Canada.

"The Doctor Dilemma is the best-researched review of the state of the health care system in Ontario I have yet come across. It helps put the debate into a balanced context and will perhaps pave the road to finding solutions." Dr Marshall Godwin, Family Medicine, Queen's University "The Doctor Dilemma is unique in devoting careful policy analysis to the specific issues now facing doctors in Ontario and, in very similar if not identical terms, other provinces. It should draw strong interest among physicians and other health professionals, administrators and policy makers across Canada as well as in Ontario." Tom Kent, Policy Studies, Queen's University