Qualified doctor in Vietnam can be accepted 2 take test for residency in Canada?

[TTCKSG]

Dear all,

I see a lot of your advice for new comers which are very useful to me.
My case is as follows:
- I 'm a qualified doctor (graduated in 1991) in Viet Nam (in South-East Asia) & working in hospitals from then till now.
- I also got the Master Degree in public health in a school in Thailand
- I have just taken the IELTS at 6.5
- I 'm performing procedures (through a Canadian Law office) for the Immigration program to Canada as skilled workers together with my family ( my wife & 2 daughters).
- I intend after immigrating to Canada, I will apply to take the Test for residency in Canada to be a family doctor.

My question is that:
- In my case above, shall I be allowed to take any Exams for residency in Canada ?
All information about Canada I get from our Canadian lawyer. I 'm afraid he doesnot specialize in medical service, then his info. is not correct.
I also hear from some guys that I'm not qualified for taking exams for residency in Canada.
I'm vey frustrated about that 😀

Could you plz spend a little time to reply me.😍
Thank you so much !

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[Giemsa]

Dear all,
My question is that:
- In my case above, shall I be allowed to take any Exams for residency in Canada ?

If you have graduated from a IMED-listed school, you can sit the MCCEE.

Once you pass the MCCEE, you can apply to sit the MCCQE Part I. Note that having passed the MCCQE Part I is not a requirement to apply for residency through CaRMS (but being a Canadian citizen / permanent resident is).

Note, however, that it is very difficult for IMGs to get residency positions in Canada. The 2010 first round matching rate was less than 20%, with the greatest success belonging to recent grads (e.g. 2010 grads) who graduated from schools in western Europe (UK, Ireland) and Australia.

You should contact (if you haven't already) the College of Physicians and Surgeons in your future province of residence to ask about the process for getting licensure. Typically most provinces also have recruitment offices that can give specific advice about getting licensed. They will also be able to advise you whether it is realistic for you to expect to practice medicine in Canada. For example, if you will be moving to Ontario, you would contact:

1) the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario
2) HealthForce Ontario (the recruitment office)
3) If you're moving to Ontario, also consult with CEPHA

Also refer to the information for IMGs maintained by the MCC.

 

[TTCKSG]

Dear Giemsa,

Hi ! Thank you very much for your useful advice. I followed your link to search my medical University from your link of IMED-listed school. It is not in the list. Does it mean the door of taking part in exams of residency is CLOSE to me ?
I intend to live in Vancouver, in case I can not take a seat in residency, can I apply to ultrasound technician ? (I studied ultrasound class in Viet Nam) Is that easy or not? Is Vancouver the best choice of living place (for find job?)

Once again, your advice is highly appreciated !

 

[JediBookworm]

BC Institute of Technology offers a multitude of allied health programs:
http://www.bcit.ca/path/health/programs/

Good luck

 

[Giemsa]

Dear Giemsa,

Hi ! Thank you very much for your useful advice. I followed your link to search my medical University from your link of IMED-listed school. It is not in the list. Does it mean the door of taking part in exams of residency is CLOSE to me ?

To apply for residency in Canada as an IMG, you MUST have graduated from a IMED-listed school. If you didn't, you can't apply. (You could email carms.ca and double check on your school's status just to be sure).

Is Vancouver the best choice of living place (for find job?)

Vancouver is Canada's most expensive city to live in. An average 2 bedroom house ranges between $600,000-$800,000 (depending on how you define "average").
There are jobs in Vancouver for sonographers - this one lists the expected qualifications (also see Jedi's link above) - but I don't know how competitive these positions are (I live about as far away from Vancouver as you can get).

I might suggest contacting the IMG-BC and the Association of IMGs of BC. They (particularly the AIMGBC) might be able to help you assess your credentials. They might also be able to give you more BC-specific info on job opportunities in affiliated fields e.g. physician's assistant, medical sonographer, etc. etc.

 

[TTCKSG]

Dear Mr. JediBookworm, Mr. Giemsa,

Thank you for your detailed guidance.

I found Doctors income in B.C here
It 's incredible.
Who know any report about the salaries of medical technicians like sonographer, X-ray technician...?
http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/legislation/msc_annual_report_2008-09.pdf

 

[Giemsa]

$28-$35/hour

 

[MontereyMD]

Hi TT

You need to know the truth and reality of becoming a physician in Canada.

First off this recent talk of money and salaries should not be the reason to enter the medical field.

Everyone wants to live in Vancouver and there is an over supply of medical professionals there. If you want a job you need to go where people are in need of your services and where initially new doctors go. Places like the North, Prince George,Kamloops, Yukon...

There are already thousands of Canadian citizens who have graduated from medical schools in Asia, Europe, Africa, South America, Mexico already living and paying taxes and citizens of Canada who are waiting for the very few coveted openings for residencies in Canada. There must be a 30 year supply of potential doctors already Canadian citizens waiting for these openings. In BC for example there are only 4-6 openings a year for foreign doctors.

Give up on trying to enter medicine in Canada.

If you want a residency in medicine then go to the United States where there are hundreds of openings a year for residents.

 

[TTCKSG]

Dear Monterey,

Thank you for yr advice. I know salary is only a part of my decision. BTW, all points must be taken into consideration for a life decision.
CAN govt. created many barriers & filters to choose only the most talented people.

 

[igotacookie]

Look at it this way. The requirements of medical school is very different in Canada from most countries. 4 years undergrad, 4 years med, 2-8 year residency, on average $150k debt. And none of the steps along the way are a guarantee.

While I'm sure you are a good doctor in Vietnam, there is no way to know that you would make a good doctor in Canada. The expectations of a medical professional are astronomical here. In addition to being intellectually adept, and to have medical knowledge its vital that we have excellent communication skills and social understanding.

Even being a family physician I can foresee many problems.
-How good is your English? Are you able to communicate effectively with your patients? (I can tell from your writing that it is not at a physician's level)
-Are you able to understand the social problems that plague many Canadians. Could you pick-up on patients suffering from depression, spousal abuse, child abuse etc...?

I can understand your frustration with not being allowed to practice here. My parents both have foreign engineering degrees and had to repeat school or obtain graduate degrees. But we must protect patient/consumer safety first.