Don’t know if there are PNP programs for physicians who aren’t licensed or close to being licensed. The licensing process is not guaranteed and could take a decade so not sure it would make sense to prioritize attracting physicians who may never be able to practice.
I am a doctor but my crs score is low to apply for PR. What should i do to increase my crs score?
- Thread starter nimish.ar
- Start date
I have done my MBBS from india and i understand the fact that matching is really difficult in canada. The reason i am asking for PR is because to be eligible to apply for residency in canada you need to have PR or a canadian resident
Have you completed your ECA? Or is your score “hypothetical.“ Many PNP programs are tied to your Express Entry profile and NOC. For PNPs, you will not be eligigible based on your NOC. So you need to increase your CRS score either by learning French or studying in Canada (made a post above).
Physician assistants are definitely licensed and they are the ones who have patient contact. The perform similar duties as a nurse practitioner.
Medical assistants aren’t licensed and mainly perform administrative roles and maybe do some vitals. It’s tough to say whether you’ll be able to work as medical assistants. Most healthcare offices, hospitals or longterm care homes will want to hire someone who wants to remain a medical assistant longterm and those who have graduated with a degree in medical assisting will likely also be prioritized.
You’ll have to pass your licensing exams before even trying to interview for a residency spot. What type of medicine do you practice? Will you be happy if you can never practice medicine in Canada because that is a high probability?
I'll share my wife's experiences, who is an international medical graduate.
We arrived in August 2021, I was a student, and she had an open work permit. Her English was not that good then, probably at an intermediate level. She started looking for a job. Because of her English level, she wasn't looking for a health administrative assistant job, so she started looking for something related to caregiving for elders. After a month of sending resumes, she never got a single call, so she decided to look for something different and found a job in a warehouse as an order picker. After a few months, she met someone who worked as a home support worker and was also a physician, so her friend referred her, and she finally got a job in that field. Her English was better now.
She worked as a HWS for 6 months. We then moved to a different city after I finished my studies, and she again started looking for a job in a similar field. This time, she started getting a lot of offers, probably because of her previous experience. She finally got a job as a personal support worker, which is usually better paid than a HSW. Most places require a PSW certificate for this job, but this place said that her previous experience and her international diploma were enough for her to perform the job. She's been there for 3 months now.
We're hoping to get PR by the end of this year after I complete my 1-year experience. She plans to study something after we get PR (cheaper when you're PR than if you're an international student). She first thought about getting into the whole physician license path, but as others have mentioned in this thread, it is extremely difficult. She is now thinking about a master's degree in something like physical therapy or kinesiology. However, those are not easy to get into either (still not as hard as getting a physician's license). A physician assistant is also an option to consider. The last resource would be getting a graduate degree in health administration, which is probably an easier path and one many IMGs take from what we've seen.
The journey for an IMG in Canada is not easy.
We arrived in August 2021, I was a student, and she had an open work permit. Her English was not that good then, probably at an intermediate level. She started looking for a job. Because of her English level, she wasn't looking for a health administrative assistant job, so she started looking for something related to caregiving for elders. After a month of sending resumes, she never got a single call, so she decided to look for something different and found a job in a warehouse as an order picker. After a few months, she met someone who worked as a home support worker and was also a physician, so her friend referred her, and she finally got a job in that field. Her English was better now.
She worked as a HWS for 6 months. We then moved to a different city after I finished my studies, and she again started looking for a job in a similar field. This time, she started getting a lot of offers, probably because of her previous experience. She finally got a job as a personal support worker, which is usually better paid than a HSW. Most places require a PSW certificate for this job, but this place said that her previous experience and her international diploma were enough for her to perform the job. She's been there for 3 months now.
We're hoping to get PR by the end of this year after I complete my 1-year experience. She plans to study something after we get PR (cheaper when you're PR than if you're an international student). She first thought about getting into the whole physician license path, but as others have mentioned in this thread, it is extremely difficult. She is now thinking about a master's degree in something like physical therapy or kinesiology. However, those are not easy to get into either (still not as hard as getting a physician's license). A physician assistant is also an option to consider. The last resource would be getting a graduate degree in health administration, which is probably an easier path and one many IMGs take from what we've seen.
The journey for an IMG in Canada is not easy.
A masters in health administration or public health are very popular options for IMGs but aren’t the greatest options. Most public health jobs are often done by nurses andpublic health is a popular degree so you have tons of public health PhD and masters grads in Canada and not a ton of degrees. Because of Medicare there aren’t a ton of health admin jobs and many are done by healthcare workers that go into management. PA programs are rare in Canada and the 2 programs are very small. They have been common for a while in Manitoba but are relatively new in Ontario. Very similar to Nurse practioners. As an IMG I would consider becoming a nurse practioners. You have an expanding scope of practice and in smaller communities basically act as a GP. Many nursing programs have a second entry option where you can finish a bachelors in nursing in 2 years with a previous degree.
I have been discouraging IMGs from coming to Canada if they want to practice medicine unless they did their training in a few select countries. Many don’t take my advice and think that if you work hard enough you shouldn’t have an issue. The issue isn’t the licensing exams it is the shortage of residency spots and budget issues. Many see the headlines of shortage of doctors and assume it is easy to get hired as a doctor in Canada. Many specialist struggle to find a full time job in Canada after they graduate because the hospitals don’t have the budgets to hire all the physicians they would like and don’t have the money or support staff to run the ORs as much as doctors need. Many MDs are limited by the amount of OR time they can secure and need more time. If IMGs want to work Iwoukd suggest other countries. For English speakers the UK and Ireland are probably the easiest ways to keep practicing. The US also may be an option if willing to work in underserved communities.
Believe the 2 year program is to become a registered nurse not a nurse practitioner. You could study to become a nurse practitioner after becoming an RN.
Can you tell me the difference between nurse practitioner and registered nurse?
And is it a good option for boys?
A nurse practioner has a bigger scope of practice than an RN. You can google it. Depending on the province they can treat certain condition, prescribe some medication, etc. In Canada they often run the health centre in underserved location but can also work in a clinic as support to doctors seeing more basic conditions. This is Canada where there aren’t roles based on gender. There used to be primarily woman in nursing because women were limited in terms of the type of jobs they could have but that is changing. Just like there are more and more female doctors there are more and more male nurses. It would still take 4 years to become a nurse practioner. You have to become a registered nurse first. If you want to remain a doctor I would suggest looking to move to another country. The UK is desperate for physicians and it would be much easier to get a job as a physician there. You have to be happy changing roles or else there is no point even considering coming to Canada.