Medniav booking system could add more doctor offices

We got to do a better job letting people know about it. That's Manitoba's Premier talking about MediNav, letting you book same-day doctor appointments online. And when I talk to people, almost universally, people are like, what? I had no idea. But soon that online tool could be expanding with more clinics to choose from. Uzoma Asagura is health minister. We're going to really push to make sure that those hours are as open and available for Manitobans as possible. MediNav is designed to get you an appointment quickly even at night. But right now you can only book government-run options like the primary clinics at four Winnipeg hospitals. Asagura wants to add physician-run clinics to MediNav. They would prioritize clinics with extended hours and lots of services. It takes pressure off of our acute sites. You've got a clinic but you've also got access to diagnostics, to lab services, and all of the reasons why somebody would choose to go to a clinic at eight o'clock at night anyway. Doctors Manitoba says MediNav should have hundreds more clinics like the one behind me. The group says it met with government officials to discuss expanding the service but hasn't heard an update in over a year. It's eager to start talking again to government, saying patients would appreciate the choice. The biggest thing for me is that all the health care providers that I've seen, I've never felt rushed. You know, they've taken the time to really talk to me, talk about what's going on. I've never had to wait for very long because I've booked that appointment ahead of time. MediNav has seen more than 91,000 bookings since it launched two years ago. Ian Fraser, CBC News, Winnipeg.