“Dear Candidate, We are very happy to inform you that you can now apply to the 2019 Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination (MCCQE) Part I through your physiciansapply.ca account. Application to the MCCQE Part I is now offered on a continuous basis, starting with the April/May 2019 session. The MCCQE Part I will be […]
We recommend that CSAs follow our Facebook page to obtain current information on matters that affect CSAs.
This year a record number of CMGs went “unmatched”. Why shouldn’t CMGs get priority access over IMGs? This really isn’t a Canadian versus internationally trained doctor issue — it is in the public interest to ensure we train more doctors through residency positions, and that we ensure we attract the most qualified doctors into these […]
LES CANDIDATS AUX ÉLECTIONS EN ONTARIO DOIVENT S’ENGAGER À DÉMANTELER LES BARRIÈRES ÉRIGÉES CONTRE LES CANADIENS QUI ÉTUDIENT LA MÉDECINE À L’ÉTRANGER ET QUI VEULENT REVENIR ET PRATIQUER AU CANADA Près du quart[1] des médecins qui pratiquent la médecine au Canada ont reçu leur diplôme de médecin à l’étranger. Plusieurs de ces jeunes étudiants […]
CALLING ONTARIO ELECTION CANDIDATES TO END ROADBLOCKS FACING CANADIANS WHO STUDY MEDICINE ABROAD AND WANT TO COME BACK AND PRACTICE IN CANADA Nearly one quarter[1] of doctors practicing in Canada today received their medical degree abroad. Many of these were young Canadian students who chose to study medicine abroad in accredited universities and have met […]
Write to the candidates in your riding. Encourage people you know in swing ridings to write their candidates. Dear Mr. / Ms. XXXXX: I would like to seek your support in addressing an unfortunate injustice in the Ontario Health System that is preventing a number of Ontario medical students who study in the United States […]
Further to our post below about the need to take political action in Ontario to ensure that we do not face the devastation of matching and then having the training position taken away because Canada refuses to issue a Statement of Need, here are the swing ridings: Ridings where the election results are most uncertain […]
UPDATE: September 10, 2018. Since this call to action was made, CSAs and their families took action. As a result of CSA action including engagement of political representatives, the restrictions on Statements of Needs have been removed. There are no more limits on the number of Statements of Needs nor the disciplines in which a […]
Sign the petition. Help distribute the petition to compel Health Canada to issue Statements of needs so IMGs can finish their careers. https://www.thepetitionsite.com/en-gb/923/882/068/demand-and-end-to-limitations-on-medical-education.-now./?taf_id=54282052&cid=fb_na
Please HELP students who matched to American residency positions keep their match. Students are devastated! Please write in their support. It is half hour or an hour of your time. It is their lives. The problem and how the system works There aren’t enough residency positions in Canada. So many students go to the US […]
“Dear Candidate,
We are very happy to inform you that you can now apply to the 2019 Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination (MCCQE) Part I through your physiciansapply.ca account.
Application to the MCCQE Part I is now offered on a continuous basis, starting with the April/May 2019 session. The MCCQE Part I will be offered in Canada and internationally through our vendor, Prometric. You will now have more opportunities to take the MCCQE Part I – four times per year in 2019 and up to five times per year in 2020.
Prometric is an internationally recognized firm with more than 20 years’ experience in exam development and administration for professional sectors. This change in exam delivery will ensure broad access for you to take the MCCQE Part I.
If you meet all eligibility requirements, you can apply to the MCCQE Part I at any time through your physiciansapply.ca account. To do so, click on Examinations in the left panel of your home page, click on Apply for an exam, and then on MCCQE Part I and follow the steps.
For more information, and to familiarize yourself with the information about the MCCQE Part I being offered in Canada and internationally through Prometric, please consult our MCCQE Part I web pages.
Please note that scheduling for the MCCQE Part I will begin in early December 2018. If your application is submitted and accepted prior to scheduling being available, you will receive a message through your physiciansapply.ca account that will include instructions on how to schedule your exam appointment with Prometric. If you apply after scheduling opens, scheduling will be available to you as soon as your application is accepted, and you receive your Authorization to Test Number through your physiciansapply.ca account.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely, Medical Council of Canada”
communications@mcc.ca
commcommun
We recommend that CSAs follow our Facebook page to obtain current information on matters that affect CSAs.
This year a record number of CMGs went “unmatched”. Why shouldn’t CMGs get priority access over IMGs?
| This really isn’t a Canadian versus internationally trained doctor issue — it is in the public interest to ensure we train more doctors through residency positions, and that we ensure we attract the most qualified doctors into these residency positions by including internationally trained doctors. We should be putting our votes behind parties that commit to increasing residency and fixing the system that prevents us from getting the most qualified doctors into our system.
Unfortunately we don’t have system today that ensures that the most qualified doctors – judged by their knowledge, skills and competence for each field of medicine – will get the limited number of residency positions available. Instead we have a system today that judges mainly by where your degree was obtained, by giving preferential access to those educated in Canada, even above other Canadians at the top of their class but trained internationally! We have talked to so many Canadians who agree that it is more important to select the most competent doctors for these competitive residency positions than to support a system that instead focuses first on where they went to school, and thus excludes many highly skilled doctors from entering most fields of medicine. Today almost 25% of Canada’s doctors received their medical degree abroad – and with almost 40% of doctors within 10 years of retirement age we need both CMGs and IMGs. If we turn away internationally trained Canadian doctors now they may never return to Canada. We have a primary physician shortage today in Canada. Not only this, earlier this year the CD Howe Institute and Canada’s largest think tank, the Commonwealth Fund, compared Canadian health care to other developed countries. We came dead last in waiting times to see specialists. The old formulas for replacing retiring doctors doesn’t work anymore. We need to plan for a replacement rate that is greater than 1 for 1. Today’s doctors aren’t willing to work 80 hour weeks because they seek a healthier work-life balance for their families. All of this means that we need more residency positions today to prepare for tomorrow. To ensure that we have the best and brightest doctors practicing in Canada, we need to put an end to the protectionist system we have today that basically tosses away valuable Canadians who earned their medical degrees abroad. Why are governments blocking Canadians from taking residency training in the U.S.A.?
|
LES CANDIDATS AUX ÉLECTIONS EN ONTARIO DOIVENT S’ENGAGER À DÉMANTELER LES BARRIÈRES ÉRIGÉES CONTRE LES CANADIENS QUI ÉTUDIENT LA MÉDECINE À L’ÉTRANGER ET QUI VEULENT REVENIR ET PRATIQUER AU CANADA
Près du quart[1] des médecins qui pratiquent la médecine au Canada ont reçu leur diplôme de médecin à l’étranger. Plusieurs de ces jeunes étudiants canadiens ont choisi d’étudier la médecine à l’étranger au sein d’universités accréditées. Ils ont rencontré toutes les normes canadiennes pour pratiquer la médecine au Canada.
La Society for Canadian Medical Students Abroad (SOCASMA) invite tous les candidats aux élections provinciales en Ontario à reconnaître et à mettre fin aux barrières croissantes qui se dressent devant les Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger. À cause de ces barrières, ces jeunes Canadiens ne peuvent pas présenter leur candidature de manière juste et équitable pour les postes en résidence au Canada. Il y a de nombreux obstacles pour ces médecins quand vient le temps de revenir pratiquer au Canada, sans compter que les barrières se dressent quand vient le temps de compléter leur formation en résidence aux États-Unis.
“Nous devons travailler ensemble et remettre en question le mythe qui veut que nous soyons obligés de choisir entre les Canadiens qui ont étudié la médecine au Canada et les Canadiens qui ont étudié la médecine à l’étranger. Les statistiques démontrent clairement que nous avons besoin des deux types de diplômés pour rencontrer nos besoins actuels et à venir en matière de soins de santé” a declaré Rosemary Pawliuk, Directrice, SOCASMA.
Madame Pawliuk sait que les “Canadiens qui étudient la médecine au niveau international sont parmi nos plus brillants. Ils ont obtenu leur diplôme de médecin à l’étranger sans que ça en coûte un sous aux payeurs de taxes canadiens; ils ont réussi avec succès tous les examens exigés par le Canada; ils sont prêts à revenir chez eux pour pratiquer la médecine et répondre aux besoins d’une population canadienne vieillissante. Nos gouvernements doivent reconnaître la valeur ajoutée de ces Canadiens en éliminant les barrières qui les empêchent de contribuer au système de santé canadien alors qu’un nombre alarmant de médecins sont sur le point de prendre leur retraite.”
Première barrière : l’accès aux placements en résidence au Canada
Plus de 3,000 Canadien étudient la médecine à l’étranger. Ils ont été accepté à des écoles de médecine sur une base compétitive et ils ont été formés pour rencontrer les mêmes normes rigoureuses établies par les universités canadiennes. Malgré cela, la majorité de ces médecins ne reviendront pas pratiquer la médecine au Canada. Ceci est en grande partie dû au fait que les Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger ne peuvent pas postuler et compétitioner pour les placements en résidence sur le même pied d’égalité que les diplômés du Canada et ce, malgré le fait qu’ils rencontrent toutes les exigences établies par le Conseil médical du Canada. Ces barrières contribuent à une “exode des cerveaux” et met un frein à cette ressource que sont devenus les médecins canadiens formés à l’étranger. La situation pourrait empirer étant donné que l’Association des facultés de médecine du Canada a proposé de limiter davantage l’accès aux résidences pour les diplômés canadiens d’écoles de médecine internationale.
SOCASMA demande à tous les candidats aux élections en Ontario de s’engager à accroître le nombre de placements en résidence et à mettre fin aux barrières qui empêchent les Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger de concurrencer de façon juste et équitable pour les placements en résidence qui sont disponibles.
Deuxième barrière : l’accès à la formation en résidence spécialisée aux États-Unis
Étant donné que les placements en résidence sont très limités au Canada, beaucoup de Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger postulent et réussissent à décrocher des placements en résidence aux États-Unis. Mais ce qui est surprenant et incompréhensible, c’est que les gouvernements de l’Ontario et du Canada bloquent plusieurs Canadiens qui veulent compléter leurs études médicales en refusant de leur remettre une “déclaration de besoins” pour plusieurs spécialités. Ces jeunes médecins canadiens se voient par conséquent refusés le visa nécessaire pour aller travailler et compléter leur formation aux États-Unis.
Notre propre gouvernement fédéral justifie son geste en arguant que l’Ontario et les autres provinces disent ne pas avoir besoins de plusieurs types de médecins spécialisés. Par exemple, les gouvernements provinciaux restreignent l’accès à la médecine interne et à ses sous-spécialités qui comprennent la gériatrie, les soins palliatifs, la pneumatologie, la gastro-entérologie, la cardiologie, l’endocrinologie (ie. diabète), etc., et ce, malgré le fait que ces spécialités sont très en demande par notre population vieillissante. Cette politique a pour effet de compromettre la carrières des Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger et ce, peu importe s’ils finissent par pratiquer au Canada qu’à l’étranger.
SOCASMA exhorte tous les candidats aux élections en Ontario à s’engager pour mettre un frein aux barrières qui s’érigent contre les Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger et qui ont la chance de compléter leur formation médicale aux États-Unis
Contact: (entrevue en anglais): Rosemary Pawliuk, Directrice 604-541-4747
(entrevue en français): Carole Lafrenière 705-753-1662
E-Mail: socasma.working@gmail.com
INFORMATION SUPPLÉMENTAIRE
Qu’est-ce que SOCASMA?
La Society for Canadian Medical Students Abroad (SOCASMA) est un organisme à but non lucratif dont le but de représenter environ 3,000 Canadiens qui choisissent d’étudier la médecine à l’étranger, à leurs frais, dans des universités internationales accréditées. SOCASMA est semblable à la Fédération canadienne des étudiants en médecine, à part que c’est le seul organisme qui représente les étudiants canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger.
Qui sont ces Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger?
Les Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger sont parmi nos plus brillants. Ces jeunes Canadiens décident de postuler à des écoles de médecine réputées pour plusieurs raisons, entre autres parce qu’ils ont des liens de famille ou des ami(e)s dans le pays où ils vont étudier, parce qu’ils ont le goût de l’aventure et parce qu’ils sont déterminés à devenir médecins. Ce sont des citoyens canadiens qui sont diplômés d’écoles de médecine accréditées et d’universités internationales. Pour être en mesure de postuler pour un placement en résidence au Canada, ils doivent rencontrer les normes canadiennes établies et avoir démontré qu’ils sont qualifiés en réussissant les examens du Conseil médical du Canada. Les Canadiens qui étudient la médecine à l’étranger représentent une réelle solution aux besoins de notre pays en ce qui a trait au recrutement de médecins. En 2018 les Canadiens diplômés à l’étranger représentaient presque 25% de tous les médecins qui pratiquent au Canada. Il est important de continuer à avoir accès à ce bassin hautement qualifiés de médecins pour être en mesure de rencontrer les besoins futurs des Canadiens en soins de santé.
Quelques données:
source Canadian Post MD Education Registry. https://caper.ca/~assets/documents/2016-17_CAPER_Census_en.pdf
source Canadian Medical Association https://www.cma.ca/En/Pages/canadian-physician-statistics.aspx
Information: Rosemary Pawliuk, Directrice, 604-541-4747
E-Mail: socasma.working@gmail.com
[1] https://www.cma.ca/Assets/assets-library/document/en/advocacy/09-grad-country.pdf
CALLING ONTARIO ELECTION CANDIDATES TO END ROADBLOCKS FACING CANADIANS WHO STUDY MEDICINE ABROAD AND WANT TO COME BACK AND PRACTICE IN CANADA
Nearly one quarter[1] of doctors practicing in Canada today received their medical degree abroad. Many of these were young Canadian students who chose to study medicine abroad in accredited universities and have met all required Canadian medical standards in order to practice in Canada.
The Society for Canadian Medical Students Abroad (SOCASMA) is calling on all Ontario Provincial election candidates to recognise and end the existing and increasing roadblocks to Canadians who study medicine abroad (CSAs) from competing fairly for residency training in Canada and returning home to practice. These Canadians also face further government-imposed barriers that prevent CSAs from even completing their residency in many specialities in the United States.
“We must work together to end the myth that we must choose between Canadians who studied medicine in Canada and Canadians who studied internationally – the data clearly shows that we need both to meet our healthcare needs now and in the future.” declares Rosemary Pawliuk, Executive Director, SOCASMA.
Pawliuk knows that “Canadians who study medicine internationally are among our best and brightest. They have earned their medical degree abroad at no cost to Canadian taxpayers, have passed required Canadian exams, and are ready to come home to practice and meet the needs of our aging population. Our governments must recognise the value of supporting these Canadians by removing roadblocks and helping them find a place in Canada’s healthcare system as today’s physicians get set to retire in alarming numbers.”
First Roadblock: Access to Residency in Canada
More than 3,000 Canadians study medicine abroad each year. They enter competitive medical schools and train to meet the same rigorous standards offered by our Canadian universities. Yet most will never come home to practice medicine in Canada. A major reason is that residency placements are not open to CSAs who are not allowed to compete equally for residency positions with graduates from Canadian medical schools. This is true despite the fact that they meet all qualification requirements set out by the Canadian Medical Council. These residency barriers create an unnecessary “brain drain” and undermine our future reliance on internationally trained Canadian doctors. This situation could get worse as the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada has proposed to further restrict access to residency positions for Canadian international medical graduates.
SOCASMA is asking all Ontario election candidates to commit to increasing the number of residency placements and to bring an end to roadblocks that prevent CSAs from fairly competing for available residency spots.
Second Roadblock: Access to specialized residency training in the United States
Given that residency placements are very limited in Canada, many CSAs successfully compete for residency spots in the United States. Surprisingly, the Governments of Ontario and Canada also block the ability of many CSAs to complete their medical residency outside of Canada by denying them the required “Statement of Need” for many specialties, thus blocking their ability to obtain their required Visa.
Our federal government justifies not issuing many Statements of Need on the basis that Ontario and other provinces claim they do not need many specialist positions. For example, provincial governments restrict access to internal medicine and related sub specialties including geriatrics, palliative care, pneumology, gastroenterology, cardiology, endocrinology (i.e. diabetes), etc. despite the fact these specialties are all in high demand by our aging population. CSAs’ careers are jeopardized both inside and outside of Canada because of this policy.
SOCASMA is asking all Ontario election candidates to commit to stop putting roadblocks to CSAs who have the opportunity to complete their medical residency in the United States.
Contact: (English interview): Rosemary Pawliuk, Executive Director, 604-541-4747
(French interview): Carole Lafrenière 705-753-1662
E-Mail: socasma.working@gmail.com
BACKGROUNDER:
Who is SOCASMA?
The Society for Canadian Medical Students Abroad (SOCASMA) is a not for profit organization established to represent approximately 3,000 Canadians who chose to study medicine abroad each year, at their own cost, at accredited medical schools. SOCASMA is similar to the Canadian Federation of Medical Students, except that it is the only group representing Canadian students who study medicine abroad.
Who are these Canadians who study medicine abroad?
Canadians who study medicine abroad (CSAs) are among our best and brightest. These young Canadians choose to enter competitive medical schools abroad for a number of reasons including family and relationships in the country where they study, a taste for adventure, and their determination to become physicians. They are Canadian citizens who have graduated from accredited international medical schools and universities. To apply for residency in Canada they must have met Canadian standards and show they are qualified by successfully passing all Canadian Medical Council exams. CSAs represent a real solution to this country’s need for the recruitment of physicians. In 2018 Canadian IMGs represented almost 25% of all medical doctors practicing in Canada and we need continued access to this highly qualified pool of doctors to continue to meet the future healthcare needs of Canadians.
Quick Facts:
Information: Rosemary Pawliuk, Executive Director, 604-541-4747
E-Mail: socasma.working@gmail.com
[1] https://www.cma.ca/Assets/assets-library/document/en/advocacy/09-grad-country.pdf
Write to the candidates in your riding. Encourage people you know in swing ridings to write their candidates.
Dear Mr. / Ms. XXXXX:
I would like to seek your support in addressing an unfortunate injustice in the Ontario Health System that is preventing a number of Ontario medical students who study in the United States or abroad to pursue medical residency training outside of Canada.
OPTIONAL SENTENCE : My (son/daughter/friend) is being impacted by this injustice for which I am seeking your support. (OR) I am seeking your support in addressing this injustice.
More than 3,000 young Canadians study medicine in the United States or abroad. They are among our best and brightest. These young Canadians are determined to pursue their studies in medicine despite much adversity. All share the dream of becoming physicians. Some will come back and practice in Canada, while others will end up practicing medicine all over the world, including Third World countries. Some may even end up being at the forefront of medical discoveries!
Yet, Canadians who study abroad face a grave injustice from their own Canadian and provincial governments when trying to secure a residency training placement in the United States or elsewhere. If they secure a residency placement outside Canada, they need to get “Statements of Need” from the Government of Canada in order for them to obtain a visa to work in another country. Canada is limiting the number of Statements of Need it issues for an increasing number of specialties and subspecialties. There are cases of medical students who have secured a residency in the United States, but were refused a Statement of Need, thus preventing them from working and training in that country or elsewhere.
Canadian Governments have set limits on Statements of Need in an attempt to control what they fear could be an oversupply of certain specialists in Canada. The fact that many Canadians who study medicine abroad various reasons end up practicing medicine elsewhere was not considered, nor the fact that Canada is the only country that limits the number of Statements of Need. Medical education training is the only field of work where Government is preventing Canadians from pursuing their dreams and career aspirations, a clear breach of our Charter of Rights and Freedom.
I am asking you to commit to ensure the federal government issues an unlimited number of Statements of Need to Canadian students who secure a residency in the United States or abroad. These students work too hard to have their own government work against their professional aspirations. Instead of blocking their career aspirations, government should celebrate the fact that Canadians who study medicine abroad are assets in addressing physician shortages around the world. Canadians who practice medicine abroad are ambassadors who can facilitate exchanges between Canada and other countries for the advancement of science and medicine. This should be supported, not stifled!
I am an undecided voter and thus, I hope I can count on your support to address this issue. I intend to vote for the candidate that will commit to endorsing Statements of Needs for all Canadians who have matched to a specialty or fellowship medical training position in the U.S or abroad.
I would appreciate receiving your response before election day.
Sincerely,
XXXX
SEE OTHER POSSIBLE PARAGRAPHS BELOW THAT YOU CAN CONSIDER. (IT’S BETTER IF LETTERS ARE PERSONAL AND NOT ALL THE SAME. YOU SHOULD MAKE YOUR YOUR OWN)
Ontario does not educate or train enough medical students to meet Ontario’s needs. One out of 5 Canadian reported waiting 7 days or more the last time they needed medical attention and one out of 2 Canadian reported waiting 4 weeks or more to see a specialist (CIHI report). Through HealthForce Ontario, Ontario tries to recruit Intenational Medical Graduates to address this gap.
Ontario actively denies a simple document called a Statement of Need to young Canadians who were born and/or raised in Canada, who have graduated from reputable international medical schools, who have proven themselves outstanding, and who have matched to American medical training programs. Without this document these bright accomplished young Canadians cannot complete their medical education and cannot be certified and licensed to practice medicine in Ontario or anywhere else in the world.
The American government is prepared to train Canadians at no cost to Canada. All the USA requires to issue a visa to allow these young Canadians to train is a letter saying there is a need for this physician in Canada. And even though there is a significant need for family doctors, pediatricians, internal medicine specialists, radiologists, and many others as is evident from Health Force Ontario’s website, Ontario refuses to endorse Statements of Need.
Canada is the only developed country in the world which does not issue Statements of Needs to its young people, so they can complete their education and training. It is the only country in the world that chooses to devastate its young citizens who have invested 8 years of their lives, incurred huge student loan debt to realize their dreams, and succeeded in proving themselves by matching to a residency training position.
Further to our post below about the need to take political action in Ontario to ensure that we do not face the devastation of matching and then having the training position taken away because Canada refuses to issue a Statement of Need, here are the swing ridings:
Ridings where the election results are most uncertain :
Ancaster – Dundas – Flamborough – Westdale, Barrie, Beaches – East York, Bramalea – Gore – Malton, Brampton – Springdale, Brant, Burlington, Cambridge, Chatham – Kent – Essex, Davenport, Dufferin – Caledon, Durham, Etobicoke – Lakeshore, Etobicoke North, Haliburton – Kawartha Lakes – Brock, Halton, Hamilton East / Stoney Creek, Huron – Bruce, Kitchener Centre, Kitchener – Canestoga, Kitchener – Waterloo, Lanark – Frontenac – Lennox and Addington, London North Centre, London West, Markham – Unionville, Mississauga South, Newmarket – Aurora, Nipissing, Northumberland – Quinte West, Oak Ridges – Markham, Oakville, Ottawa West – Nepean, Parkdale – High Park, Parry Sound – Muskoka, Perth – Wellington, Prince Edward – Hastings, St. Catharines, Sarnia – Lambton, Scarborough – Agincourt, Sarborough – Rouge River, Simcoe – Grey, Simcoe North, Sudbury, Thornhill, Toronto – Danforth, Trinity – Spadina, Whitby – Oshawa, Windsor West, York Centre, York – Simcoe, York South – Weston, York West
UPDATE: September 10, 2018. Since this call to action was made, CSAs and their families took action. As a result of CSA action including engagement of political representatives, the restrictions on Statements of Needs have been removed. There are no more limits on the number of Statements of Needs nor the disciplines in which a CSA can train. The only restriction is that the residency training program must be ACGME approved and be recognized by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada rcpsc.ca.
Published April 19, 2018
This is long but read it. IF CSAs WANT TO HAVE ACCESS TO AMERICAN RESIDENCY YOU MUST ALL ACT NOW ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE FROM ONTARIO WHERE THE ELECTION IS LOOMING. SOCASMA CANNOT do this for you. ONTARIO CSAs and their family have to act.
Some people believe that they cannot influence political policy. Sometimes this is true, especially in the middle of a term. But during an election, if we are wise, we can influence policy. Elections are often decided by a few seats. And in many ridings the determination of who wins the seat is a matter of just a few hundred votes. So people like you can influence an election and the policies that are pronounced during the election. Here is the how to:
a. Bring awareness of the issue to the candidates in your riding;
b. Target the “swing riding” candidates. There is no point in pressing a candidate in a riding which always goes with a particular party. I can assure you that the majority of their work and sometimes even their money will be directed to the swing ridings because that is where the vote is needed. See the post below where Carole has identified the swing ridings.
c. Be an “undecided” voter. If you have decided how you want to vote, nobody cares about what you want anymore especially during the election. It is the undecided voter that candidates recognize they must win over.
d. Build a case for why unlimited SONs are important to the public. The public does not care about you as much as it cares about itself. the fundamental truth is that Canada in general and Ontario in particular does not train enough doctors to provide enough doctors to keep the level of health care the same as it is now, let alone meet the increased needs of the baby boomers, let alone recognize that more and more doctors are women and more and more seek a balanced life no longer wanting to work 80 hours a week and more and more are seeking early retirement, not to mention that many are now reaching retirement age. We rank a distant and dismal last in timely delivery of health care. See:
https://www.cdhowe.org/…/Final%20for%20release%20e-brief_27…
People literally die on waiting lists and in emergency waiting rooms in Canada. It is going to get worse before it gets better. If you need more information to build the case as to why it is in the public’s interest to insist that Ontario endorses unlimited Statements of Needs, let us know. The case for unlimited endorsements is strong. One interesting fact is that Ontario is the driving force behind limiting Statements of Need. It has endorsed zero SONs in the past.
e. If you are not in a swing riding, after doing a letter to your candidates to familiarize them with the issue, you should go to the nearest swing riding and inform the people in that riding why it is vital to THEM that they contact their candidates or sign a Petition which says that Ontario must start endorsing unlimited Statements of Needs so that Canadians can train in the US. If you can get even 7 people to write letters in a swing riding, it will be of concern. If you can get 14 to write letters and if even a couple of people attend at the office of the candidate in the swing riding, it will go to the leader of the party and it will be raised with the policy strategists of the party. Target candidates in all the parties.
f. If you are in a swing riding, call on your friends and neighbours to write letters and attend on the candidates. Make this issue as loud and as big as you can.
g. Your message must be:
I AM AN UNDECIDED VOTER. I WILL VOTE FOR THE PARTY WHICH RECOGNIZES THAT Ontario’s WELFARE DEPENDS ON ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE. IF YOU ARE NOT PREPARED TO TELL ME THAT YOU WILL MAKE CERTAIN THAT ONTARIO ENDORSES UNLIMITED STATEMENTS OF NEEDS IN SPECIALTIES AND SUBSPECIALITIES, I WILL NOT BE VOTING FOR YOU. MY VOTE GOES TO THE CANDIDATE WHO STOPS RESTRICTING ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE BY STOPPING CANADIANS FROM TRAINING AS DOCTORS. WHAT I AM ASKING FOR DOES NOT COST ONTARIO A CENT. CSAS HAVE PAID FOR THEIR EDUCATION. THE USA PAYS FOR THE TRAINING.
I know that you are in school and working your butts off right now. But just think about how it will feel or must have felt to have worked for 8 years, incurred tremendous debt, spent thousands of dollars interviewing, and to have victory snatched away by your government denying you a SON. Each and every CSA should be writing a letter–an individualized letter preferably–and telling those that love you at home to take an active role in this election. Do not squander this opportunity, please.
If you need support or information contact Carole socasma.working@gmail.com. Carole is in Ottawa, but she needs feet on the ground all over the province.
IF YOU DO NOTHING NEXT YEAR WE WILL BE FACING THE SAME DEVASTATION. AND NEXT YEAR IT IS UNLIKELY THAT THERE WILL BE TECHNICAL ISSUES THAT FORCE HEALTH CANADA TO ISSUE MORE SONs.
Sign the petition. Help distribute the petition to compel Health Canada to issue Statements of needs so IMGs can finish their careers.
https://www.thepetitionsite.com/en-gb/923/882/068/demand-and-end-to-limitations-on-medical-education.-now./?taf_id=54282052&cid=fb_na
Please HELP students who matched to American residency positions keep their match. Students are devastated! Please write in their support. It is half hour or an hour of your time. It is their lives.
The problem and how the system works
There aren’t enough residency positions in Canada. So many students go to the US to train.
After a student matches to an American program he needs a work visa from the US. One of the requirements of the visa most commonly endorsed by American residency positions (J1 visa) is that Health Canada issues a Statement of Need saying that Canada has a need for that particular type of physician.
The process: each province gives Health Canada a list of the type of specialties that they will endorse. Health Canada adds it up and produces a Statement of Need. Then these Statements of Needs are handed out to students who matched to an American residency program on a first come first serve basis. There is no differentiation as to which province the student is from. Some provinces like Ontario have endorsed zero Statements of Needs which is unfair to its students and to other provinces.
Health Canada opened for applications at 1 pm on Match Day. We have heard from students whose emails went through within less than 15 minutes of 1 o’clock who have been denied Statements of Needs.
We have received heartbreaking calls and communications from dozens of students who have matched to American programs but have been denied a Statement of Need. They have asked for reconsideration, but the provinces have said no. These young people have spent a minimum of 4 years working to the sacrifice of most other things, written not just their school exams but Canadian and American exams as well, scored at levels higher than Americans so they had a reasonable chance to match, incurred debt, and matched. Only to find that their country has taken them out at the knees by denying them a Statement of Need frustrating their ability to do their residency training.
Hardest hit are Pediatrics, Anesthesiology, Internal Medicine, and Diagnostic Radiology.
Statements of Needs are supposed to be issued if there is a need. This is not being done. For example, government documents show that Ontario despite a physician shortage and long waiting lists typically does not endorse any Statements of Needs.
-PLEASE urge family, friends, and especially physicians you know across Canada to write to their provincial representative, copying Health Canada, and others (contact information is at the end of this document) to stop limiting training of Canadians in the US and to please issue Statements of Needs to the students who have been denied. The message is that there is a need and this current action is contrary to the public interest. We will regret it in the future.
Here is a table that compares the number of Statements of Needs for ALL of Canada[1] to the job openings posted today with BC’s physician recruiting agency:
| Discipline | Statements of Needs Approved for ALL of Canada | Current job openings in British Columbia alone. (Health Match BC) |
| Anesthesiology | 25 | 35 |
| Internal Medicine | 165 | 36 generalists (subspecialists listed separately on the website.) |
| Pediatrics | 30 | 36 |
| Diagnostic Radiology | 15 | 18 |
In BC we do not train enough doctors to meet the attrition each year from retirement, etc.
Doctors of BC estimates attrition of approximately 400-450 physicians each year. Number of residency positions in 2017—346.
[1] The link to number of Statements of Needs approved by Health Canada: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/health-care-system/health-human-resources/statements-need-postgraduate-medical-training-united-states/list-needed-specialties-issuing-statements-need-under-category.html
Where to write
In BC the person’s name is Catherine Omuti. The email is welcome@healthmatchbc.org
In BC another key player is Paul Clarke Telephone Number: 250 952-1396; Fax Number: 250 952-2125; Email: Paul.Clarke@gov.bc.ca