fellowship and licensure in the US for Candian residents

[Guest ewon2003]

Hi everyone,

 

I have a few questions regarding fellowship and licensure in the US for Candian residency graduates.

 

Suppose a Canadian med student finishes residency in Canada and want to do a fellowship in the states:

 

(1) Does the residency training in Canada have to be recognized in the state (ie the person can write license exam and be certified in the states) before doing residency?

 

If this is the case, does that mean ENT and Neuro surg residency graduates from Canada cannot do a fellowship in the US because the Canadian residency training in no longer recognized in the US?

 

(2) Would training in fellowship programs in the US allow a Canadian residency grads to practice in the US later on?

 

(3) Are fellowship trainings in the US recognized in Canada?

 

If you know the answer or know where to look up it will be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks

[Guest Ian Wong]

Floating to the top...

 

Ian

[Guest LoveMcGill]

Anybody has answers to these? Thanks.

[Guest desiguy8179]

I will try to answer some

 

1 as far as fellowship is concerned,it depends on individual program,they formulate their own policies for fellowships,it can be different form american speciality boards.i know few IMGs that have done surgical fellowship without residency in us/canada

2.yes certainly,again check with wat state u wanna go into,req may slightly differ but most of times they just want 2 yrsof residency in us/canada,same with usmle exams some may req,others may accept LMCC

3most of times they are recognised,please check individual speciality at RCPSC site for info

[Guest therealcrackers]

3. Certain residencies are accepted, others are not, often based on the number of years. Example: US obstetrics is 3 years, Canada it's 5 years. A US residency will not meet Royal College requirements, so it doesn't work.

BUT, the converse does work. US programs love getting Canadian OB residents for licensure because they've had the extra 2 years of training, most of which is extra surgical training...

Canadian neurosurgical residents found out the hard way that their training is not sufficient in the eyes of the American Society, so they cannot get licensure in the US.

[Guest desiguy8179]

neurosurgical residents can certainly get license as it req only 2-3 yrs of residency and fellowship too but not board certification which can play a role in getting good job offer but in private practice it is not that critical

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi there,

 

Are you sure about neurosurgery? I know a Canadian neurosurgeon who moved south about 5 years ago, but I'd heard that more recently, the US neurosurgery door has been shut. One of the reasons for this was due to an apparent glut of neurosurgeons in the US, and another was that the US neurosurgeons were getting a little peeved at the number of Canadian surgeons who were hopping down to take their jobs.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest Ian Wong]

(1) Does the residency training in Canada have to be recognized in the state (ie the person can write license exam and be certified in the states) before doing residency?

I thought that this was the case, but subsequently, I've emailed a little bit with a recent Canadian ENT residency graduate who is currently doing a fellowship in the US. He is ineligible at this time for the American Board of Otolaryngology exam, but yet was able to do this fellowship. I'm not sure if he'll be eligible to sit for this exam following the conclusion of his fellowship.

If this is the case, does that mean ENT and Neuro surg residency graduates from Canada cannot do a fellowship in the US because the Canadian residency training in no longer recognized in the US?

A couple of months ago, I would have agreed with this statement, but having talked with this individual, I guess that US fellowships are still a possibility, even if you are ineligible for US board-certification following a Canadian residency. I am not clear on the details, however, and I'm not sure if the completion of said US fellowship would make you eligible to write the US board exams. Without that eligibility, I think your ability to practice independantly in the US is in significant danger (during your fellowship, I assume that you would be signed off under your attending, who would be board eligible/board certified).

(2) Would training in fellowship programs in the US allow a Canadian residency grads to practice in the US later on?

Don't know the answer to this, as above.

(3) Are fellowship trainings in the US recognized in Canada?

I think in general, yes. Many Canadian residency grads head to the US for fellowship simply because the options for fellowship are far larger in the US than in Canada.

 

Ian

[Guest LoveMcGill]

Thanks Ian. This is an interesting thread. If you get to pick your friend’s brain some more, please let us know.