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Can you get double-boarded in FM and another specialty?


mdmdmdmd

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Hey Everyone! 

Wondering if its possible to be double boarded in Canada in FM and another specialty (I know its possible in the US). Most obvious example would probably be (IM/GIM) and FM. Anyone ever done this? Would you have to do two residencies (one unpaid probably), or could you do say, GIM, with additional time in FM clinics and be able to write both the CFPC and another exam?

Also, I wonder that if this was an advertised and possible option we might be able to 1) help the family doctor shortage for some specialists who can't find jobs right away and 2) provide opportunities for specialists to do locums/ work in smaller locations.

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There are people who have gone back and retrained in another specialty whether it be FM or something else. It would often require you to go back to residency. There is a re-training/re-entry pathway that is available in Ontario but I don't know any specific details about it.

In theory there are ways to "switch" practices or add additional definition to your practice without doing a residency. In Ontario the college would mandate you do some time of supervised practice and do the appropriate courses in the specific specialty/subspecialization .

 

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1 hour ago, mdmdmdmd said:

Wondering if its possible to be double boarded in Canada in FM and another specialty (I know its possible in the US). Most obvious example would probably be (IM/GIM) and FM. Anyone ever done this?

You could but why would you want to do that? Basically just seems like a waste of your time and tax-payer money tbh. You would need 2 years for FM and at least 4 years for IM. 

1 hour ago, mdmdmdmd said:

Would you have to do two residencies (one unpaid probably), or could you do say, GIM, with additional time in FM clinics and be able to write both the CFPC and another exam?

Yes, you would normally have to do 2 residencies, you would have to go through carms twice (one for FM and then the 2nd for IM or vice versa if you start with IM) and in the 2nd time around I believe you would only be able to go through carms in the 2nd round i.e. in the stream competing against all the IMGs who want to match into family or IM. You would still get paid for doing your second residency in Canada at least. In most situations you would also have to write both the CFPC exam to practice FM and the royal college exam to practice IM. 

1 hour ago, mdmdmdmd said:

Also, I wonder that if this was an advertised and possible option we might be able to 1) help the family doctor shortage for some specialists who can't find jobs right away and 2) provide opportunities for specialists to do locums/ work in smaller locations.

For 1) Even if this was advertised I can't imagine many people will jump on the opportunity to do that. Also, most of the specialists who can't find full time jobs are usually not internal medicine trained (there is also a bit of internal med shortage at the moment with many hospitals looking to hire internists). It's also presumptuous to think that a specialist who can't find a job would be interested or even able to practice family medicine well. As an internist, which (along with peds) people would argue is most closely related to family medicine, I wouldn't necessarily be comfortable practicing family medicine. In the US internists also do primary care, but here in Canada, the last time I did a speculum exam, counselled a woman on taking birth control, did a well baby visit, or provided psychotherapy was in medical school. Going out in the community to practice this could cause errors to happen, open you up to a lawsuit, etc. plus I just would not be comfortable doing these things. Also many specialists who I know who can't get a full time job now (ortho and urology/nephro friends) would rather keep doing fellowships or sporadically locum in their specialty then go back and train to do family medicine. 

For 2) There are almost always opportunities for people to do locums or work in smaller locations, but many people just don't want to go to these locations. 

That being said, there are people who go into a specialty and realize they don't like it and go back to train in family med or go back and do internal, not necessarily to help out the system but because they think that they would enjoy the other specialty more

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