Alberta Health Professions Act

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mkmgal

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For those Amreican-trained physicians interested in practicing in Canada, Alberta has opened up another option. The new Health Professions Act, which passed January 1, 2010, now acceptes the USMLE and COMLEX as equivalent to the Canadian board exams. This makes practicing North of the border a little easier (less money, less hassel, less studying, etc). Now, American-trained docs don't have to take the LMCCE exams. Alberta now joins the province of Ontario with similar legislation. It sounds like other provinces are contemplating similar legislation, but I don't have any details. Feel free to contact the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta (www.CPSA.ca) for further details.

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That's encouraging news! According to the British Columbia Osteopathic Association www.osteopathic.bc.ca the USMLE and COMLEX exams are also accepted in place of the MCC exam series. However, in order to gain board certification in whatever specialty you're trained in by the RCPSC, you may have to complete either the MCCEE, the MCCQE 1 and 2, or the USMLE series in order to be eligible to sit for that exam. Good news though!
 
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For those Amreican-trained physicians interested in practicing in Canada, Alberta has opened up another option. The new Health Professions Act, which passed January 1, 2010, now acceptes the USMLE and COMLEX as equivalent to the Canadian board exams. This makes practicing North of the border a little easier (less money, less hassel, less studying, etc). Now, American-trained docs don't have to take the LMCCE exams. Alberta now joins the province of Ontario with similar legislation. It sounds like other provinces are contemplating similar legislation, but I don't have any details. Feel free to contact the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta (www.CPSA.ca) for further details.

Read the legislation at http://www.cpsa.ab.ca/Services/Registration_Department/Alberta_medical_licence/Overview.aspx
(link above doesn't work because the root is cpsa.ab.ca)

If you don't have your LMCC you aren't eligible for full licensure. But you can obtain provisional licensure.

These are the restrictions of the provisional category:
Conditions placed on the Provisional Register Conditional Practice licence may include, but not be limited to:
Successful completion of a period of supervised integration into practice satisfactory to the Registrar
Restriction to non-specialist status
Scope of practice conditions or restrictions
Participation in a physician mentorship program approved by the Registrar
Peer review
Other conditions as may be deemed necessary by the Registrar


Like the third/fourth pathways in Ontario, provisional licensure includes the requirement of completing an assessment (before practice? during practice?). It is described here. It involves review by an independent assessor (basically a test - OSCE? - that you must pass). Then you submit to a period of supervised practice (which is why you need a sponsor to use this option).

Questions can be referred to [email protected]
 
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The devil is always in the details, so I am being extra cautious/neurotic and was wondering if anyone could confirm the following:

According to this new act, if a student (born in Alberta) goes to an LCME-accredited med school in the US, then completes an ACGME-accredited Radiology residency in the US, all they would have to write are the Royal College Exams to be able to practice in Alberta?

Furthermore, this same person would not need to do QE1/QE2, and be subjected to the 12-18 month preceptorship program once they graduate from a US residency and want to practice in Alberta?

(PS the residency in question here would be 'radiology': 5 years in Canada and 5 years in the US)
 
Read the legislation at http://www.cpsa.ab.ca/Services/Registration_Department/Alberta_medical_licence/Overview.aspx
(link above doesn't work because the root is cpsa.ab.ca)

If you don't have your LMCC you aren't eligible for full licensure. But you can obtain provisional licensure.

These are the restrictions of the provisional category:
Conditions placed on the Provisional Register Conditional Practice licence may include, but not be limited to:
Successful completion of a period of supervised integration into practice satisfactory to the Registrar
Restriction to non-specialist status
Scope of practice conditions or restrictions
Participation in a physician mentorship program approved by the Registrar
Peer review
Other conditions as may be deemed necessary by the Registrar


Like the third/fourth pathways in Ontario, provisional licensure includes the requirement of completing an assessment (before practice? during practice?). It is described here. It involves review by an independent assessor (basically a test - OSCE? - that you must pass). Then you submit to a period of supervised practice (which is why you need a sponsor to use this option).

Questions can be referred to [email protected]

I thought they made the COMLEX series and USMLEs equivalent to taking the MCCQEs (i.e. being a LMCC)?

Specialty Practice

Unrestricted licence (General Register)


Standard Route: Candidates must have:

  • An acceptable medical or osteopathic degree,
  • The Licentiate of the Medical Council of Canada (LMCC), United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE, minimal pass level on all steps), or Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX, minimal pass level on all steps),
  • Successful completion of a specialty residency programme in Canada or a postgraduate programme of specialty training outside of Canada of at least 48 months, and
  • Certification from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (FRCP or FRCS)***
http://www.cpsa.ab.ca/Services/Regi...rta_medical_licence/independent_practice.aspx
 
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