Doctors Manitoba released new research today confirming wide public support for eliminating sick notes to verify short-term absences from work. The report shows 96% of Manitobans support eliminating or limiting sick notes. Even among business owners or managers, support was at 95%. 

“Manitoba has the biggest shortage of family doctors in Canada, so it’s vital we all work together to free up as much of their time as possible for patient care,” explained Doctors Manitoba President Dr. Randy Guzman. ​“By eliminating sick notes in Manitoba, we can free up over 300,000 visits for patients, which is the equivalent of adding over 50 doctors to our province overnight.”

The report highlights the results of a public survey, which found:

• 96% of Manitobans support eliminating or limiting sick notes, including 87% that favour elimination, and 10% who prefer limits on sick notes, such as after 10 or 7 days. 
• 95% of business owners and managers support elimination or limits, including 84% for elimination and 11% for other limits. 
• 71% of workers said they would go to work sick rather than get a sick note. 

“Going to work sick can be a risk to workplace productivity, because it can expose other workers to viruses and increase sick time overall,” explained Dr. Guzman. 

Last year, a Joint Task Force to Reduce Administrative Burden for Physicians recommended the elimination of physician sick notes to the Minister of Health. The Canadian Medical Association called for the elimination of sick notes across the nation as well. All provinces have taken action to limit sick notes, except for Manitoba and Alberta. 

Doctors Manitoba has extensively researched the impact of sick notes and has consulted broadly with public and private employers, unions, and other groups to build a consensus on how to transition away from sick notes. Additional research is available at a new website launched by the provincial medical association, Sic​kNote​.ca. Last month, a workshop was held to identify how to transition away from sick notes, including input from employer, labour, and government leaders, as well as experts in human resources, occupational medicine, and law. A final recommendation will follow shortly, along with a toolkit to support employers and other stakeholders with the transition away from sick notes for short term absence verification. 

➡️ Read the new research report here

➡️ See the new website Sic​kNote​.ca

Definitions

Sick Note: A sick note is a document written by a doctor to verify an illness or injury that results in a short-term absence from work, school or other institution. Sick notes serve the sole purpose of verification. 

Doctors Notes and Medical Certificates: There are other types of requests to physicians for medical advice beyond simple illness verification. These generally include medical advice that is used to inform decisions in the workplace or educational institution. For example:

• Accommodation notes
• Long term leave and return to work
• Functional assessments

There are thousands of employers and educational institutions in Manitoba. Each has created its own unique requirements or medical forms for these types of requests.