Primary Care Networks

Your doctor is a member of this PCN

Your doctor a member of the Leduc Beaumont Devon Primary Care Network (LBD PCN). This means you are part of the LBD PCN, where a team of doctors, nurses and other professionals will help you improve your health.
There are 41 PCNs providing coordinated health services throughout Alberta. Through a partnership between family physicians and Alberta Health Services, each PCN is uniquely designed to meet the needs of its patients.

In addition to the care you receive from your family doctor, programs and services at your PCN include:

• diabetes management
• weight management
• mental health
• eldercare consultation team
• referral coordination
• Prescription To Get Active
• specialists clinics
• after-hours clinics (Leduc & Beaumont)

Ask your doctor or health team member to connect you with the PCN services that are right for you.

Primary Care Networks

In 2003, Alberta Health and Wellness, the Alberta Medical Association and Alberta's Regional Health Authorities (now Alberta Health Services) established the Primary Care Initiative (PCI) to improve access to family physicians and other frontline health care providers in Alberta.

The purpose of the PCI is to develop Primary Care Networks (PCNs) and support them in meeting the objectives of the program.

In the 2003 PCI Master Agreement, the three health partners set an agenda of:

Increasing the number of Albertans with access to primary care services
Managing access to appropriate round-the-clock primary care services
Increasing the emphasis on:

Health promotion
Disease and injury prevention
Care of patients with medically complex problems
Care of patients with chronic diseases

Improving coordination of primary health services with other health care services including hospitals, long-term care and specialty care services
Fostering a team approach to providing primary health care.

The Primary Care Initiative oversees and supports the development of PCNs. There are 41 PCNs operating throughout Alberta more in the planning stages. More than 3,800 family physicians in Alberta are working in PCNs.

What is Primary Care?

Primary care is the first point of contact a person has with the health system - the point where people receive care for most of their everyday health needs. Primary care is typically provided by family physicians and health care professionals such as nurses, dietitians, pharmacists, mental health professionals, therapists and others.

Primary care includes the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of various health conditions. It also includes referrals to specialists and diagnostic services such as laboratory tests or X-rays.

Family physicians and Alberta Health Services personnel routinely provide primary care services within PCNs. Family physicians are often the first step for patients seeking appointments for primary care needs while Alberta Health Services provides important services such as laboratory and X-ray services.