Maintaining the momentum that has been building in revitalizing family medicine is a key priority for the new president of the Saskatchewan Medical Association (SMA).

Dr. Pamela Arnold of Regina was elected SMA president for 2025-26 on May 2, during the SMA’s 2025 Spring Representative Assembly (RA) in Saskatoon. Dr. Arnold succeeds Prince Albert physician Dr. Andre Grobler.

Dr. Arnold told RA delegates that 80 per cent of physicians eligible for the Transitional Payment Model (TPM) have signed on to it, and 34 projects have received funding under the $10-million Innovation Fund (IF). The TPM and the IF were negotiated in the 2022-26 Agreement with the provincial government.

“I will be eagerly watching the progress of these initiatives and the impact they could have on the future of family medicine in Saskatchewan,” Dr. Arnold said. “Family doctors were invited to come forward with their ideas for the Innovation Fund, and I am proud to say they have answered the call.”

Dr. Arnold added that enhancing physician health through the SMA’s innovative health and wellness programs will also be a priority during her term. “Physician health doesn’t just mean meditation or resilience training,” she said. “It also means working in a health system that operates seamlessly for physicians and their patients, utilizing the latest technologies and innovations, so that the work-life balance that everyone talks about is a real possibility.”

Dr. Arnold is a clinical care associate in Regina. “Every physician in the province deserves respect and admiration for going to work and putting all their energy into serving the people of the province,” she said. “Often this work is not recognized or is underrecognized, but the SMA board sees what physicians are doing, and thanks them for it. I respect and admire every doctor out there going to work and putting all your energy into serving the people of this province.”

RA delegates approved other positions on the SMA Board of Directors at the Spring RA:

• Carla Holinaty, Saskatoon – vice-president
• Geethan Chandran, Saskatoon – honorary treasurer
• Sanchit Bhasin, Regina – SMA board
• Braden Bouchard, Battleford – SMA board
• Breanna Davis, Prince Albert – SMA board
• Sarah Liskowich, Regina – SMA board
• Stephen Loden, Meadow Lake – SMA board

They join Drs. Morgan Hewit (Saskatoon), Jay Kalra (Saskatoon) and Mohamed Moolla (Regina) on the SMA board.

President’s address

Dr. Andre Grobler, the SMA’s 2024-25 president, told RA delegates that one of his main objectives for his one-year term was to talk face-to-face with physicians across the province and with the SMA’s partners in the health system.

“We cannot make progress without dialogue, even if some of those conversations are hard,” he said. “We made a lot of progress on a lot of files over the past year.”

He highlighted work on implementing the MCRC Agreement and in developing a mutually agreeable set of Practitioner Staff Bylaws. The Bylaws and Rules Review Committee (BRRC) was renewed and has met four times since December. The parties have been building trust and a collaborative relationship, Dr. Grobler said.

He also noted he attended multiple meetings with physicians and with health system stakeholders in Regina. These included meetings with the executive of the Regina Medical Staff Association to gain a better understanding of the scope and depth of the issues of concern for Regina physicians.

SMA governance and Strategic Plan

Sessions were conducted by Dr. Arnold and Bonnie Brossart, SMA CEO, on the SMA’s governance model and the SMA’s Strategic Plan. Highlights included:

• Governance at the SMA is guided by the association’s vision, mission, values and the 2023-27 Strategic Plan.
• The SMA board exercises the powers of the SMA and the RA between RA assemblies, oversees execution of the strategic plan and annual business plans, and communicates with members. The RA provides front-line input and high-level policy guidance for the SMA on issues affecting the profession, the association, and the health and welfare of the public. The RA drives strategy, the SMA board oversees the strategy, and the CEO and senior leadership put the strategy into effect.
• The three pillars of the Strategic Plan are: Ensure physicians are fairly compensated; improve physicians’ health and well-being; and deliver exceptional service to and for members.
• The four SMA objectives for 2025 are: Achieve a mutually acceptable next version of the SHA bylaws and rules, restructure the primary health care contract, establish sustainable team-based care in Innovation Fund clinics, and address racism experienced by physicians.

Primary care renewal

A panel discussion included Dr. Kirsty Sanderson, Vice-President, Section of Family Medicine Board; family physicians Drs. Ginger Ruddy, Sean Groves, and Craig Cantin; Mark Ceaser, SMA Director, Economics, Clinical Informatics & Research; Tahirih North, consultant for the SMA; and Melissa Kimens, Executive Director, Primary Care Branch, Ministry of Health. Highlights included:

• Primary care renewal aligns with the SMA’s strategic objective to establish sustainable team-based care in Innovation Fund clinics.
• The aim is to stabilize and transform primary care, which is the foundation of the health system. When primary care is stronger, all physicians are stronger.
• The roadmap toward the Patient’s Medical Home (PMH) is now at the Innovation Fund stage for some clinics. The goals of the Innovation Fund are to accelerate PMH implementation, improve work-life balance for family physicians, improve patient access and quality through health care teams, and strengthen PMH and Health Network collaboration. Saskatchewan will always struggle with adequate physician resources, but the team-based care model could potentially address retainment and recruitment challenges.

Anti-racism action plan 2025-29

Dr. Holinaty, Chair, SMA Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee, made a presentation to delegates. Highlights included:

• The 2023 Racism in Medicine survey findings confirmed systemic, structural, and interpersonal barriers in Saskatchewan’s medical system. Racism remains a persistent issue in medicine. It affects the emotional and physical well-being of physicians, career progression, learner success, and system equity.
• The EDI Committee has finalized a five-year work plan that outlines goals, objectives, and measures. As a part of work plan, the SMA has developed an Anti-Racism Framework and Action Plan. The core goals of the action plan are: Equipping members and staff to recognize and address racism, creating inclusive structures and supports within the SMA, collaborating for systemic change across the health system, and raising awareness and driving action beyond the SMA.
• Years one and two of the action plan focus on building internal capacity — understanding racism, recognizing and naming it, and taking early steps toward action. Years three and four extend outward — working with others, raising public awareness, and advocating for deeper systemic change.
• A two-day conference, taking place on Sept. 26 and 27 in Regina, will explore the connections between EDI and physician well-being. A keynote speaker will be Cadmus Delorme, who is former chief of the Cowessess First Nation. He will present on the intersectionality of racism and nationality and how those culminate into the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action for the health care system.

SHA bylaws update and related activities

Dr. Grobler; Dr. Arnold; Andrew Will, CEO, SHA; and Dr. Jordan Wingate, Interim Chief Medical Officer, SHA; made a presentation to delegates. Highlights included:

• The SMA and the SHA have been building trust and working through issues. Each side has a better understanding of what the other wants to achieve in the bylaws including what belongs in the bylaws and what is better dealt with through rules and policies.
• Both parties have identified issues that should be resolved by BRRC. BRRC will also work on the development of rules once bylaw discussions have led to an agreement.
• BRRC has made significant progress since it was reconstructed with new membership. Of the seven legacy issues, two still must be discussed.

Minister of Health’s address

Jeremy Cockrill, Minister of Health, and Lori Carr, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, Seniors, and Rural and Remote Health, highlighted the following:

• The spring 2025 budget contained a record $8.1 billion in health spending. Priorities include more timely access to acute and primary care, progress on the addictions and mental health action plan, new and upgraded facilities, and expanding the workforce through the Health Human Resources Action Plan.
• The budget contained an additional $95 million for physician services, which includes funding for negotiated fee increases, increased utilization, and the hiring of additional physicians. It also contains ongoing annual investments to implement the negotiated Agreement.

• A digital ad campaign, called “Saskatchewan is calling,” will launch that encourages physicians from the United States to consider practicing in Saskatchewan.

• The virtual physician in the ER program will be expanded to 25 communities. The program is intended to be temporary until more physicians are hired, but it has prevented service disruptions at rural facilities.

SMA Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting of the SMA was a hybrid virtual/in-person format, held on May 3. Members received for information the audited financial statements of the SMA for the year ending Dec. 31, 2024.

Other business

The RA received reports from Dr. Grant Stoneham, Registrar, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan, and Dr. Sarah Forgie, Dean, College of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan.

Canadian Medical Association president Dr. Joss Reimer presented a CMA honorary membership to Dr. Guruswamy Sridhar of Regina, who served as SMA president in 2010-11. Dr. Sridhar’s involvement with the CMA and SMA spans several years and roles. He was the SMA’s representative on the CMA Board of Directors from 2014 to 2020. He was a member of several SMA committees, including chair of the Medical Compensation Review Committee that concluded two Agreements with the government, the last being the 2017-22 Agreement.

The 2025 Fall Representative Assembly of the SMA will take place Oct. 24-25, 2025, at the Sheraton Cavalier Saskatoon.