Quote:
Originally Posted by PacificBlue2012
A few Canadians I know have told me that Australian qualifications are recognized in Canada especially those for GPs.
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Only insofar as described above. If you're a specialist, you still need to pass all the relevant exams, but you may not have to re-do residency. The Royal College reserves the right to tell you no.
For family docs (the concept of the GP is being phased out) you may be eligible for not having to write the CFPC, but this is contingent upon your already being fully eligible for licensing by the province of your choice*, and having applied for said licensure, fully meeting the rest of the CFPC requirements, and being fully licensed in Australia. The CFPC reserves the right to tell you no.
For the Australian-trained crowd, I would be very, very nervous about that qualifier: "intrapartum care is not compulsory". I read that as: if you haven't done it (say as an elective), we won't license you because in that event your program doesn't meet our standards. If anyone out there is looking at trying to sneak back in using this particular loop hole, I'd definitely check into that statement.
Practically, these exceptions-to-the-rule are used as a way to introduce foreign-trained physicians into jobs that the provinces couldn't fill otherwise. Most med students and residents have no idea how convoluted it can be to get licensure, even if you are a Canadian trained grad with all the bells and whistles (I know of what I speak). For IMGs, even with theoretical recognition (e.g. US, Ireland, Australia), they are not obligated in any way to let you come here and practice. Many, many Canadians training abroad and going to be unpleasantly surprised when it comes time to try and get recognition here without a Canadian residency - it's not impossible, but it's not going to be easy.
* This is key. The province may have any number of individual specific requirements including but not limited to the MCC exams, and meeting this is key to getting the CFPC exam deferral from the CFPC.
In other words, if there is anyone out there doing residency in the privileged countries who wants to return to Canada upon completion, check into the requirements NOW.