In British Columbia (BC) this problem is made worse because the province produces fewer medical graduates for each person than any other province in Canada. The provincial government has committed itself to doubling the number of medical student graduates. This strategy doesn't come close to giving us the new doctors needed each year in BC to replace those who are retiring, moving out of the province, reducing their hours of practice, or dying.

The primary care system is showing its cracks. Ten years ago, 2,030 of BC's family doctors were providing obstetrical (产科的) care. Today just 945 are performing this invaluable service. Although delivering babies is a “good news” area of medicine, the hours are long, but the reward for bringing new life into the world is modest. It's no surprise, then, that many of BC's family doctors are no longer taking on new patients. In 1999, there were 1,420 family doctors accepting new patients — in 2004 that number declined to 599, a drop of 58%.

The foundation of primary care needs to be strengthened. The Working Agreement between the doctors and the government includes a series of primary care renewal projects designed to make the family practice more attractive to medical graduates, improve upon working conditions, and entice family doctors from outside BC to start their business here. Yet still more needs to be done.

体裁：说明文　题材：社会生活　主题：家庭医生

【语篇解读】　该文主要介绍了加拿大家庭医生严重缺乏的问题。