TORONTO (CP) - Parents and pediatricians in Ontario are banding together to warn of a looming shortage of community-based medical care for children.

The new Ontario Pediatrician Alliance said Friday the government is putting too much emphasis on more expensive, hospital-based pediatric care. They say the result is a growing shortage of doctors who work outside hospital settings to look after about 500,000 children in the province who need ongoing, complex care, they said.

"All of us see this looming crisis on a daily basis," said Dr. Hiro Yamashiro, a Toronto-area pediatrician and alliance co-chairman.

The doctors and parents say community-based pediatricians provide critical continuity of care, ease the pressure on hospitals, and save the system money.

Instead, more pediatricians - a group already in short supply - are opting to head into hospitals because of better pay and working conditions, the alliance said.

Still, they said the problem is not funding, but a government strategy that appears to steer pediatricians out of the community and into hospitals.

They argued the province has offered few incentives to keep pediatricians doing specialized, developmental work in the community and that is adding to the already heavy burden on hospitals and difficulty obtaining timely care.

"By taking these pediatricians out of the community, we will only compound the problem," said Heidi Bernhardt, director of the Attention Deficit Resource Network.

"We need pediatricians to stay in the community to diagnose, treat and support children with mental health concerns."

The alliance has begun a petition to Health Minister George Smitherman, who did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

About 50 pediatricians from across the province joined parents at a session Friday to discuss the problem and find solutions.

The gathering follows a one-day study session in February by the province's anesthetists that caused hundreds of elective surgeries to be rescheduled.

Alliance co-chair Mary Salegio, a mother of two boys with complex medical conditions in Ottawa, said having ready access to a pediatrician who knows the family well and can be relied on for care is crucial.

"Being the parent of a child with complex medical conditions is made easier knowing that you have a community pediatrician on your team," said Salegio.