🩺 Provincial Budget // Our History & Future // Award Winner Dr. Alexander Sharp

March 21, 2025

This week’s Vitals: 1500 words / 9 min read

Learn about what’s in the provincial budget that helps doctors and your patients, meet our Resident of the Year Award winner, and a reminder to participate in Stone Soup Week!

TOP STORIES

Provincial Budget

This week, the provincial government unveiled a budget that was focused on protecting our economy during a possible trade war, while still trying to advance improvements in health care. DRMB was at the Legislature to hear the Budget Speech, analyze the numbers, and meet with Ministers.

→ See our summary here, with highlights for physicians and medical learners

DRMB Sick Notes in the Media

Last week, we released a new report showing strong, widespread support among Manitobans for eliminating sick notes, including strong support from employers too. This is important evidence as we make the case for legislation to eliminate one of the leading administrative burdens for physicians. See our story here about the new report. We’ve also launched a new website SickNote.ca to help policymakers and employers understand the impact of sick notes. Media coverage included:

Getting Healthy Winter Challenge Wraps

Our Getting Healthy Winter Challenge has finished and nearly 10,000 Manitobans made a commitment to work toward Getting Healthy! Congratulations to the winner of our Winter Challenge, Jordyn Bain of Winnipeg! She's won a Summer Adventure Trip to Churchill complete with airfare, accommodations, tours and more by making Getting Healthy part of her winter plans.The winner of the Getting Healthy Prize pack is R. Bartel!

GettingHealthy.ca continues to be a resource for health tips and advice with blog posts and articles! Whether it’s improving sleep, reducing stress, eating better, moving more, or getting caught up on screenings and immunizations, Manitobans can find answers from the most trusted source: doctors.

Our Past & Our Future

Doctors Manitoba has hired a Historian-in-Residence to sift through our archives and review our 100+ years of documents. Our goal is to understand the history of discrimination and mistreatment within the profession and how Doctors Manitoba may have contributed to it, as well as the progress and milestones towards making medicine a more fair and inclusive profession.

The results of this work will be presented at HeartBeat, a special event planned for Wednesday, April 23 at the Fort Garry Hotel in Winnipeg to celebrate the excellence and diversity of our profession. Connect with physicians, students and residents at this special in-person event. You’ll be inspired by leaders who will share their personal journeys to breaking through at our fireside chat.

Heartbeat 2025 will include the Annual General Meeting commencing at 6:30 p.m. The AGM will include voting on extending membership to international medical graduates in the medical licensure program. The AGM Agenda can be found at the link below, and other AGM documents will be available before the event.

There is no charge for members to attend.

→ Learn more and register here.

Planning to attend the Rural and Remote Medicine Conference April 24-26? Start your stay in the city with HeartBeat the night before.

Dr. Alexander Sharp to Receive Resident of the Year Award

Meet our Dr. Alexander Sharp, Resident of the Year award winner!

A fourth-year resident in General Internal Medicine, Dr. Sharp is recognized for his clinical ability, patient advocacy, and innovative research contributions. His dedication to addressing barriers is reflected in both his medical practice and scholarly work, including HIV, STBBIs, substance use disorders, and homelessness.

🏆 Read about all of our 2025 Doctors Manitoba Award recipients.

Gala almost 50% Sold Out!

Celebrate Dr. Sharp and the other 8 amazing physician winners at our Gala on May 10! It’s already almost 50% sold out!

→ Get your tickets here!

It's Stone Soup Week!

Get out this week to a participating restaurant to try some delicious soup, and support a worthy cause in the process! Restaurants across the province are featuring a soup on their menu this week, and $1 from each bowl will go to support breakfast and meal programs in schools across the province, care of the Child Nutrition Council. Doctors Manitoba is a proud sponsor of Stone Soup Week, and we invite physicians and medical learners to participate.

→ Click here to see the restaurant list, or to enter their 60/40 draw.

Trade War Updates

We know many physicians continue to be concerned about the evolving trade dispute started by the U.S. We will continue to provide updates that we think may be useful.

This week, the CMA released a report showing widespread concern among physicians about how the trade dispute could impact their patients. Physicians said they were most concerned about the cost of living for patients (83%), the cost of medications (70%) and a potential shortage of medications (71%).

This reinforces a report we released late last month outlining the same widespread concerns from physicians.

Please continue to reach out with your concerns by emailing us at practiceadvice@doctorsmanitoba.ca.

Many physicians are also concerned about their investments and retirement plans. Our partner at MD Financial Management is now posting a weekly Tariff Watch Update to look at recent events with a focus on specific implications for practice management and physician investment strategies. This information is available whether or not you are an MD client.

→ Read MD Financial Tariff Watch here.

Leadership Begins with Self-awareness - PLI Course

DRMB and CMA Physician Leadership Institute are offering this 6-week online accredited course for physicians in their first 5 years of practice who want to make meaningful change at work, develop skills for working with different personality types, and find ways to engage yourself and your colleagues. We welcome applications from all practicing physicians, however applicants in their first 5 years of practice will be prioritized. This course has a time commitment of 3 – 4 hours of self-led activities, and a 1‑hour facilitated online weekly session.

Learn more.

HEALTH SYSTEM UPDATE

Manitoba Health has announced its spring COVID-19 Immunization program which will run from May 1, 2025 - June 30, 2025. Read the letter to health care providers.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Here are the most read and important recent stories, in case you missed them:

Manitoba Health is replacing the EPiCS/WebLink billing submission process with a new web-based e-claims portal beginning April 1. See what’s different and find out more about transition planning
Work with Doctors Manitoba this Summer! We’ve created two internships for medical students this summer. Get the full details and apply before April 7 !
Our President, Dr. Randy Guzman, met recently with Finance Minister Adrien Sala to discuss our recommendations for this year’s provincial budget. Our advocacy focuses on urgent, cost-effective actions to help doctors improve care for patients. Read more .
Join or support a group of physicians who are getting active while fundraising for Main Street Project. Learn more about Doctors Into the Cold for Main Street Project

EVENTS and CPD

We feature events planned by Doctors Manitoba, as well as other events submitted by the medical community to share and connect with their peers.

Spring Mentorship Event

Mentors and mentees are invited to the spring mentorship event on Monday, April 14 at the Leaf at Assiniboine Park. The night features a live game show, dinner and prizes and plenty of opportunities for connecting. If you are part of our mentorship community as a mentor or mentee, check your email and send along your RSVP!

Other Events:

EVENT: Webinar: Changes in HPV Testing at Colposcopy

DATE: March 26, 2025, 8 to 9 a.m.

OVERVIEW: Join Dr. Sarah Kean, Medical Lead, CervixCheck CancerCare Manitoba, in this interactive presentation on the assessment and treatment of abnormal cytology.

DETAILS: Registration is required.

To view/download the event poster, click here (pdf).

HOSTED BY: CancerCare Manitoba

EVENT: CMA Health Summit, Ottawa and Virtual

DATE: March 27-28, 2025

OVERVIEW: Sessions will cover where political parties stand on the future of healthcare,

Indigenous self-determination, and Navigating the AI revolution in healthcare

DETAILS: Access more program details and register now.

EVENT: Introduction to Mindful Practice presented by Dr. Jillian Horton

DATE: June 7-8, 2025 at The Studio in Pineridge Hollow

OVERVIEW: Rooted in the evidence-based, JAMA-published Mindful Practice Program from the University of Rochester, this CPD accredited workshop teaches and deepens skills in meditation, self-awareness, and self-regulation

DETAILS: Sign up today! No previous experience with mindfulness is required.

HOSTED BY: Rady Faculty of Health Sciences

EVENT: Mental Health Rounds

DATE: May 23, 2025 - 6th Floor, 363 Broadway, Winnipeg

OVERVIEW: Psychological injuries in the workplace- What role does WCB play?

DETAILS: RSVP by emailing alockste@wcb.mb.ca

HOSTED BY: WCB

Browse our Events Calendar

We are here to support the whole physician.

Every step of the way.

Your health & well-being are important to us.

Visit DRMB.ca/HELP to connect to support services or call 1.844.433.3762