FM REsidency for non-resident IMG

[familymed1]

** I now realise that I should be able to get permanent residency in Canada prior to the match - this changes things a little (I hope) **

 

Hi guys,

 

Hope you can help here.

 

I am currently in Med school in the UK, engaged to a Canadian. I want to do family med and move to BC.

 

I will be taking the USMLE's to apply to the states but ideally it would be better to match to anywhere in Canada instead. That way, residency is only 2 years and there is little or no problems with transferring my qualifications etc.

 

I know how competitive the Canadian match is for Canadian IMGs (there are many at my school). My questions is, is it even possible to match as a non-Canadian IMG into family med anywhere in Canada?

 

Any advice on this would me much appreciated.

 

Thanks

[Mourning Cloak]

I know how competitive the Canadian match is for Canadian IMGs (there are many at my school).

 

Very. Only about 20% of IMGs match (with some schools / regions doing better than others e.g. Ireland generally does better than the Caribbean).

 

My questions is, is it even possible to match as a non-Canadian IMG into family med anywhere in Canada?

 

No, you must be a Canadian citizen / permanent resident to apply to CaRMS.

[leviathan]

Hi guys,

 

Hope you can help here.

 

I am currently in Med school in the UK, engaged to a Canadian. I want to do family med and move to BC.

 

I will be taking the USMLE's to apply to the states but ideally it would be better to match to anywhere in Canada instead. That way, residency is only 2 years and there is little or no problems with transferring my qualifications etc.

 

I know how competitive the Canadian match is for Canadian IMGs (there are many at my school). My questions is, is it even possible to match as a non-Canadian IMG into family med anywhere in Canada?

 

Any advice on this would me much appreciated.

 

Thanks

The other responses are accurate. I would look into completing your post-grad family med training in the UK, as it should be transferrable to BC without any hassles or extra examination requirements.

 

But if you absolutely must move to BC before finishing your training, you'll have to get citizenship first and then apply to the BC IMG program. Depending on when you finish there should be anywhere from 30-40 spots available for you to apply to, but it will still be difficult. Also taking one of the training spots comes with a requirement to work for 2 years in a rural BC community.

[familymed1]

The other responses are accurate. I would look into completing your post-grad family med training in the UK, as it should be transferrable to BC without any hassles or extra examination requirements.

 

But if you absolutely must move to BC before finishing your training, you'll have to get citizenship first and then apply to the BC IMG program. Depending on when you finish there should be anywhere from 30-40 spots available for you to apply to, but it will still be difficult. Also taking one of the training spots comes with a requirement to work for 2 years in a rural BC community.

 

Thank you both for the replies. That's great information to have at hand.

 

Sounds like a residency in Canada is out for me then. We would like to move closer to the OH's family in any case as she has been away from BC for many years now so if I could complete a residency in the US it would suit too.

 

Do either of you have any experience/information on moving to BC to work after completing a Family Med residency in the states? Are there many hoops to jump through or is it a simple application process?

 

The long-term plan is to work in BC/Coast as a FP.

 

Thanks

[Dr.Henderson]

Thank you both for the replies. That's great information to have at hand.

 

Sounds like a residency in Canada is out for me then. We would like to move closer to the OH's family in any case as she has been away from BC for many years now so if I could complete a residency in the US it would suit too.

 

Do either of you have any experience/information on moving to BC to work after completing a Family Med residency in the states? Are there many hoops to jump through or is it a simple application process?

 

The long-term plan is to work in BC/Coast as a FP.

 

Thanks

 

Here's the relevant page from the College of Family Physicians of Canada on their recognized international training. This means if you complete your postgraduate training in these countries you may apply for the CCFP designation without additional examination: http://www.cfpc.ca/RecognizedTraining/

 

The United States is one of them . Best of luck!

[familymed1]

It'll be tough but doable. The UK is not a bad place to do medschool so you'll have a definite leg up on the caribs and south asians. (by the way, UK docs are pretty damn well-trained from what I've witnessed - I would say perhaps even better than our own given that medschool has become a big mid-level kumbaya)

 

My suggestion is to either match to BC with an ROS attached, or go to Manitoba for it, where there are no ROSs attached to their positions.

 

Actually, I now realise that I should be in a position to get permanent residency in time for the match. This surely increased my chance, right?

[Dr.Henderson]

Actually, I now realise that I should be in a position to get permanent residency in time for the match. This surely increased my chance, right?

 

It doesn't really increase your chances, rather it gives you a chance since citizenship or permanent residency is a requirement for all applicants. Here are the B.C. eligibility requirements from CaRMS:

 

http://www.carms.ca/eng/r1_eligibility_prov_e.shtml#bc

 

You'll also need to meet the general criteria, outlined here: http://www.carms.ca/eng/r1_eligibility_e.shtml

 

Which includes writing and passing the MCCEE.

 

Good luck

[leviathan]

Thank you both for the replies. That's great information to have at hand.

 

Sounds like a residency in Canada is out for me then. We would like to move closer to the OH's family in any case as she has been away from BC for many years now so if I could complete a residency in the US it would suit too.

 

Do either of you have any experience/information on moving to BC to work after completing a Family Med residency in the states? Are there many hoops to jump through or is it a simple application process?

 

The long-term plan is to work in BC/Coast as a FP.

 

Thanks

As it currently stands the Canadian College of Family Physicians will take the US family med board exams as equivalent. BC will take USMLE steps 1-3 in place of the LMCC exams, however I don't know if there is any reciprocity with UK licensing exams, so you might have to do either the US exams or the Canadian ones. Actually to apply to US residencies you'll need the USMLEs anyway.