NB: My thanks to Dr. Greg Dubord and Dr. Paul Conte for co-authouring this blog.
Last June, Ontario physicians changed how the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) is governed. It wasn’t by writing angry letters. It was by registering for a virtual meeting, giving up some of their valuable time by showing up, and voting. The lesson was simple: members CAN change an organization that is supposed to advocate for and defend them, IF they are willing to get just a little bit involved.
The same opportunity is now in front of every practising member of the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC), but the window is short.
WHAT’S ON THE BALLOT
In July, Dr. Greg Dubord, Dr. Paul Conte and I, each filed the same six proposals with the CFPC in accordance with the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act. On August 12 the College confirmed in writing that all six will go into the notice of meeting for the October 28 Annual Meeting of Members, exactly as we filed them.
Our motions are bylaw amendments, rather than ordinary resolutions. In 2023, members voted 95 per cent for access to Board minutes and 91 per cent for an independent review of the PGY3 process. Because they were not bylaw changes, the Board treated them as suggestions and declined to implement either. A by-law change means it is mandatory for the Board to follow it.
The full text of the motions (warning – there is a lot of legal jargon), can be found here. In plain English however, the six motions would:
1. Let members elect the President and the Board directly, with any member free to run and no committee screening the candidates.
2. Post Board and committee minutes to the member portal within 30 days.
3. Let members vote electronically in advance on member proposals, using the electronic voting system the College already runs.
4. Accept member proposals year-round instead of an easy-to-miss 60-day summer window.
5. Require the Board to respond formally, within 90 days, to any member proposal that passes: either an implementation plan or written reasons for declining, which members then vote on.
6. Publish five CFPC financial figures every year: travel and hospitality, sponsors over $10,000 by name, spending on the College’s own CPD products, consultant fees, and legal fees.
Number one is the big one. Right now the Board decides, in the by-law’s own words, “in its sole discretion,” who gets to be a candidate, and the President is acclaimed (i.e., installed without a vote) rather than elected. A small group choosing its own successors is the dictionary definition of an oligarchy. Motion 1 begins to democratize the CFPC.
WHAT ELSE IS COMING
The Board is bringing its own package of by-law amendments to the same meeting. At the September 9 member town hall (the recording is on YouTube) the President described it as corrective changes to bring the by-laws into line with federal law. She also said the Board will circulate its own commentary on our six motions alongside its package.
Fair enough. But not one clause of the Board’s package was shown at the town hall. Members will see the text for the first time when the notice of meeting arrives, which the College says will be by October 7. That leaves us just three weeks to read it before the vote.
We will be watching to see if the Board package touches the same sections our motions amend. We also want to see if the motion will be to approve the whole package in a single vote (i.e an omnibus vote) or each Board motion will require a separate vote. We prefer the latter.
One more thing to watch: the order of the votes. The Chair sets the agenda, and it would be natural for the Board’s package to come up before our motions. If their package rewrites the sections on elections, and then Motion 1 comes up, don’t be surprised to hear that the member motion “conflicts with the by-law as just amended.” It doesn’t. Our motions amend whatever by-law is in force at the moment they pass. But it’s the kind of thing that sounds convincing at 8:15 PM with a timer running, so it’s worth knowing before you log in.
HOW THE MEETING WORKS
The College has posted its meeting norms for October 28. If you read them you’ll see it allows only ninety seconds per speaker, with a visible timer. There’s no chat function, so you don’t have a clue what any of your colleagues are thinking. No amendments permitted from the floor.
In other words, nothing gets decided by debate on the night. Everything gets decided by who registers, and who shows up having already made up their mind. If physicians who simply favour the status quo, and the usual from the CFPC are the only ones that show up…….well…….
WHAT TO DO
The three of us recognize that family physicians are ridiculously busy. It has taken far too long for recognition of the unremitting nature of comprehensive family practice to be spoken about. Despite this, not nearly enough is being done to change things. This means that you all have precious little free time. However, the blunt reality is that we can’t change the CFPC for the better, unless members get involved.
We ask all CFPC members to do three things.
First, watch your inbox. The notice of meeting, with all six motions and the Board’s package, arrives by October 7. It will include registration and proxy instructions (yes, there does appear to be a proxy system for the CFPC, unlike for the OMA AGM).
Second, register the day it arrives. October 28, 7 PM Eastern, virtual. Put it in your calendar now.
Third, if you can’t attend, appoint a proxy. The notice will tell you how. A proxy vote counts exactly the same as one cast in the room.
And one question worth asking the College at amm@cfpc.ca: where on the agenda do the member motions sit, and will each be voted on separately? They’ve confirmed the motions are on the ballot. They haven’t said where, or how.
Regardless of what the leadership of member driven organizations may say, member engagement is always a good thing. The more members get involved and have their say, the stronger an organization will be. We encourage all family doctors to join us at the AGM.
We will post again with more information as the situation arises.
