Province introduces first-ever reliable measure of patient attachment

Release

Department of Health, Office of the Premier

September 24, 2026

FREDERICTON (GNB) – For the first time, New Brunswick now has a clear and more reliable picture of how many people have a primary care provider, thanks to a new approach that uses medicare data to directly measure patient attachment.

For years, patient attachment and timely access to primary care have been estimated using a combination of public opinion polling, information from regional health authorities, and data from NB Health Link. The new approach aims to give the government more consistent information to track progress and identify where more work is needed.

“This is about making sure we have the information we need to understand where we are today and where we need to go,” said Premier Susan Holt. “For the first time, we are using medicare data to track patient attachment. This gives us a clearer picture of who has a primary care provider and who is still waiting, so we can make better decisions about how to improve access to care.”

Since April 1, the government has been working with the New Brunswick Medical Society, Nurse Practitioners of New Brunswick, Horizon Health Network and Vitalité Health Network to collect and validate the information.

The new data shows that, as of last Friday, 619,354 New Brunswickers were attached to a primary care provider. The government has set a goal of increasing patient attachment to 85 per cent – or 749,795 New Brunswickers – by the end of 2028.

The government is also committing to provide monthly updates on patient attachment numbers and will launch a public-facing patient attachment dashboard by the end of the year.

The data also provides a clearer picture of patient attachment across New Brunswick’s health zones:

Patient attachment by health zone, as of August:

·         Zone 1 – Moncton: 193,948 (70.9 per cent)

·         Zone 2 – Saint John: 146,623 (74.5 per cent)

·         Zone 3 – Fredericton: 127,928 (63.3 per cent)

·         Zone 4 – Madawaska/North-West: 34,052 (64.8 per cent)

·         Zone 5 – Campbellton/North-East: 16,537 / (62.2 per cent)

·         Zone 6 – Bathurst/Acadian Peninsula: 66,069 (79 per cent)

·         Zone 7 – Miramichi: 32,233 (70.8 per cent)

“This is an important step forward in how we understand patient attachment in New Brunswick,” said Health Minister John Dornan. “For too long, we have relied on different sources of information to understand how many New Brunswickers have a primary care provider without a true picture. Medicare data gives us a clearer and more consistent way to track this information and understand where gaps remain.”

Dornan said the data will continue to be strengthened as physicians and other health-care providers update their patient information and reporting.

As part of the new physician services agreement, clinics are also working to review and update their patient attachment lists. This will help ensure that patient records are current and that people who are no longer attached to a provider can be identified and connected to care.

“Our new physician services agreement is the first in Canada to require family physicians to track and report patient attachment information to the Department of Health,” said Dr. Carl Boucher, president of the New Brunswick Medical Society. “This gives us a more accurate understanding of attachment across the province and creates greater accountability for improving access to primary care. We are pleased to see this information being reported publicly and look forward to continuing our partnership with government and health system partners to strengthen primary care for New Brunswickers.”

“Our number one priority is improving access to primary care for New Brunswickers,” said Holt. “We are building collaborative care clinics and bringing health-care professionals together so more New Brunswickers can get the care they need, close to home. Better data will help us understand where the needs are and make sure our efforts are reaching the people who need them most.”

The government has supported 18 collaborative care clinics across the province and is continuing to expand this model, with a patient attachment goal of 19,500. It has committed to expanding or opening at least 30 collaborative care clinics by 2028. These clinics bring health-care professionals together to provide team-based primary care with the aim of improving access for patients.

“This is about transparency and accountability,” said Holt. “New Brunswickers deserve to know whether we are making progress. We are improving how we collect this information so we can better understand what is working, where the gaps are and where we need to focus next.”

24-09-26

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