Looking to do a medical residency in Ontario? Check these new requirements first
The Ontario government is introducing new requirements that could see fewer residencies for internationally trained doctors, even as the province faces a doctor shortage.
International medical graduates from places like the UK, Australia or the Caribbean now must complete at least two years of high school education in Ontario if they want to apply for the province’s first round of residency matches.
Those who wish to pursue their residency in Canada are required to apply through CaRMS – the national agency that works to pair doctors with residency programs – in order to be matched with a residency location.
But doctors across the province say the government’s decision is having “unintended” consequences.
Toronto anesthesiologist Philip Santos, himself internationally trained, said it’s important to have a physician workforce that reflects the general population.
“You need doctors trained in Canada and I would never say no to that,” he said. “But I also think we need immigrants. We need internationally trained physicians with very diverse backgrounds to care for our population.”
Residency applications range greatly depending on specialization, province, and educational background. Typically, international medical graduates will complete one or more tests when preparing for the first round of matching.
More than 1,000 people lined up in the snow in Walkerton, Ontario on Wednesday to try to get a family doctor – but only the first 500 made it through.
Zainab Abdurrahman, president of the Ontario Medical Association, told CBC Radio that that phase has already started, which is disappointing for some people applying for residency spots. metro morning,
“When you’re trying to get your documents together, starting to put things in place, changing the rules is really ruining them,” he said. The first round will end on Nov. 27, CARMS told CBC in an emailed statement.
Before the new requirements, there were more than 1,200. International medical graduate applicants eligible in the first round Ontario Residency Program. Now, it is expected to drop to only 170, OMA’s general and family practice section said in a news release Tuesday.
‘This is very discriminatory’
Santos said this is not enough.
“We feel like we have to do better to be able to be in the same places and spaces as other Canadian-trained physicians,” he said. “When you’re trying to get licensed, you feel like you’re never good enough.”
In an emailed statement, CaRMS said Ontario is the only province with such eligibility criteria, but not the only province with a dedicated application stream. For example, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick have their own streams through which internationally trained physicians can apply if they can prove they have ties to the provinces.
Ontario’s second round tally consists of the positions remaining after the first round tally. In that era, international medical graduates will not be required to complete two years of high school in Ontario. But those applying for the second round will face competition from Canadian trained doctors who could not make it to the first round.
“It’s very discriminatory,” Santos said. “We’re basically creating two types of citizens in our society: citizens by birth and Canadian citizens by immigration.”
A spokesperson for Ontario’s Ministry of Health said the change in requirements is intended to support residents educated within the province who also have international medical degrees.
“Our government is not only ensuring local postgraduate training opportunities, but we are also continuing to build our health care workforce to connect people to convenient care in every corner of the province,” Ema Popovic said in an email.
Nearly 2.5 million Ontarians without a doctor: Research Network
Abdurrahman said she understands the province is trying to get Ontarians back into the workforce. But he highlighted that doctors who sign up to do their training in the province must also sign a legally binding contract, meaning they are required to practice in Ontario for at least five years.
“Once you settle down, are practicing, maybe have a family, you often stay in the same area,” she said.
Abdurrahman said the Ontario Medical Association is in talks with the province about the changes because it could mean fewer applicants.
“Unfortunately, this type of approach is also having many unintended consequences,” he said. “I think maybe we’re going against what we’ve worked so hard to improve.”
CaRMS said it would not know the impact of the change until the end of the first round of matching.
However, the province is already in dire need of doctors. Nearly 2.5 million Ontarians were without a family doctor last June, according to INSPIRE-PHC, a health research network.
“Reducing the number of people who are included in that pool to apply for those spots could actually leave a lot of unfilled spots in our system, which we don’t want,” Abdurrahman said.
David Barber, chair of the OMA’s general and family practice section, said in an email statement that when he first saw the new requirements he thought he had misread the new requirements.
He said, “We desperately need more family doctors in Ontario. If a new doctor has completed medical school, I can’t imagine why we would prevent them from starting residency based on where they went to high school.”
“We should be opening doors, not closing them.”
