Several months after the OPMA, AGM of October 2018, I wrote the following to the executive of the OPMA. I have also attached the response I got. I have not heard from anybody since

Good morning Jim

Hopefully you are having a wonderful and relaxing Easter weekend with your family.

Two recent things have pushed me to connect with you.

Firstly, not that long ago, I received communication from your office that there had been a meeting with the Ministry of Health along with members of the OSC and their representative from the Daisy group. The fact that we are allowing their lobbyist (and look at who this is) to be in on meetings with the OPMA and our not having any such representation is bothersome to me.
Secondly, this past week we received word that other healthcare professionals are receiving the rights to order certain tests and perform certain acts that are expanding their scopes of practice. Unless I am not fully informed, it appears that we are again being left out.

These two events listed above would indicate to me that the Don Gravy train has again failed us.
This goes to the heart of what I expressed at the fall AGM and I continue to be mystified as to why we are persisting down this road to failure.
I look forward to your reply

Fraternally

David  
--

David Greenberg BA,DPM, FAAFAS 

James: Thanks for your input.  The item is on the agenda for our next Board meeting.  I will let you know what transpires asap.

I did however receive, as we all have, a members update as of January 31, 2020.

My question to the membership is:

 Does anybody feel optimistic or content with the contents as expressed in that correspondence?

I certainly am not.

Again we are talking about proposed drug regulations and a few other items that we've been talking about for some time. 

The most important item relates to the conversion to a podiatry model. Is this not a rehash of the same stories that we have been told for many many years? 

One  difference however is that we are working very closely with chiropodists to evolve podiatry as we know it to a super chiropody model.

 I take no solace in the fact that other people are also struggling to advance their cause. 

We have and have always had a very unique type of service which includes all levels of medicine including osseous surgery. No other group can make that claim.

Certain facts remain.

Podiatric medicine which includes osseous surgery is dying.

Along with that dies the requirement to have the highest level of podiatric medical training in order to practice in Ontario

In spite of this failure to achieve our goals, the OPMA is proceeding along the same failed path that has taken us to this point. 

I agree with others who have lamented that the OPMA has now become redundant and ineffective. 

I would urge others to voice their concerns if they are in fact bothered by where we are at this point

As I edge to retirement, I am slowly evolving my practice to a chiropody  model even though I am bringing in a Quebec trained podiatrist to work in my office. I am lucky in Ottawa in that I can send my surgical patients to Quebec to have osseous surgery by skilled podiatric surgeons. 

Since I’ve already paid my OPMA dues for this year, I am still considered a member.  But I can’t see any reason why future funds should be given to an association that continues to under perform- with no likely chance of success, by following the same ineffective actions

Offensive is an interesting word to describe my lament for the state of my profession today in Ontario

Our 2018 AGM meeting led me to believe that the Daisy group was involved with the OSC. If I was mistaken, then I apologize for that.
However the fact remains that a very strong Liberal, Warren Kinsella , was asked to present to a new Conservative government the problems that we have been facing. Was the meeting not with him, the OSC and OPMA?

This, after our present lobbyist, with very strong Liberal connections failed to accomplish the goals  that we have been so patiently pursuing at great expense for so many years.
CG remains on our payroll

 It matters little to me that other groups with lesser qualifications or other interests were able to get what we failed to achieve

Who recommended Warren Kinsella, and why was he accepted?

Alternative lobbyists with strong Conservative ties were suggested, and rejected. Why?

If the efforts of the OPMA had been effective, I would be glad to have eaten my words. But it’s obvious that they have not been successful 

The bottom line remains the same   The profession as we know it is dying and turning into a chiropody group  

I would hope that my comments previously stated would be viewed more as a request for the members to become involved in this discussion  and freely share their views.

I would again ask that a notice go out to the members asking them to go to our OPMA website and join this conversation. It is possible that many members have not signed up to be notified of conversations and may have missed all of this

I think it would be very healthy

I do agree with David. We are dying. Actually we are dead. When we had a chance to try a new direction with someone different to advocate with us it was turned down. We have spent well over $1,000,000.00 with our current advisers and what do we have moving forward. The same old the same old. If you think that when you do the same thing over and over again and expect a different result, you are wrong you will not.

It has been so painful to watch what has happened to the profession and our association in Ontario after all the years we have all sacrificed. How much longer will the OPMA be able to survive without $$$ ? CG will just move onto another client but we can not move to another vocation. Losing our conference which was the life support of our association and what bonded us all together was a great blow. Encouraging us to go to the CFPM and OSC clinical conferences is embarrassing. 

I have offered to help in so many ways whether politically or with  conferences but have been ignored. I oversaw one of the most successful global clinical podiatry conferences, ever in Montreal. It is time for me to step back and just enjoy my family and my life. 

I wish you all the best of luck.

Robert Chelin