WORKING

Physician or Surgeon

Working in Ontario

The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) regulates the practice of medicine in Ontario. If you are an internationally trained physician or surgeon and you want to practise in Ontario, you can learn more about programs for International Medical Graduates (IMGs) in the ‘Regulatory Body’ section of this page.

Tools and Information

Programs for International Medical Graduates:

The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care has made it easier for foreign-trained doctors to practise medicine in Ontario. In 2004, the ministry more than doubled the number of assessment and training positions available to international medical graduates annually from 90 to 200. To learn about the application process, visit the International Medical Graduates section of the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care website.

Career Transitions for International Medical Doctors is a central resource for health sector employers and for international medical doctors, also referred to as international medical graduates, who wish to pursue an alternative career in health care.

Getting Help

If you are qualified in your profession but new to Ontario, you may benefit from a bridging program. Bridging programs help qualified immigrants move more quickly into their professions without duplicating what they have already learned.

Catholic Immigration Centre – Ottawa
Bridge Training for International Medical Doctors in Preparation for Medical Licensing

This program will help international medical graduates to enter qualifying programs or get their license by providing information about:

• the Canadian health care system,
• occupation-specific language and
• culture in the Canadian health care context.

Those taking part will increase their understanding of the standard methodology for testing applicant’s clinical skills, which can differ from the testing methods used elsewhere.

Workplace exposure and clinical training placements through observerships provide additional exposure to health care in Canada.

Public contact: Arber Zaplluzha, Project Manager
Phone: (613) 232-9634 ext. 418
E-mail: arber@cic.ca
Website:
http://www.cic.ca/services-success-med-doctors-e.php

Catholic Immigration Centre
Career Transitions for International Medical Doctors and Other Healthcare Professionals

This project will help 480 internationally trained doctors transition into non-regulated alternative healthcare employment by offering 10 three-week workshops addressing transferable skills, healthcare sector orientation, occupation-specific language training, workplace culture communications training, and volunteer and paid employment opportunities.

Contact: Arber Zaplluzha
Program Manager
Phone: (613) 232-9634 ext. 418
Fax: (613) 232-3660
E-mail: arber@cic.ca

George Brown College of Applied Arts and Technology
Pre-Health Science Program for Internationally Trained Individuals

This program is adapting an existing high-demand George Brown Pre-Health Science program to better meet the particular needs of internationally trained individuals.

The changes include occupation-specific language training and core curriculum tailored to address the barriers and gaps that internationally trained individuals face when looking for work in the health care sector.

Participants gain workplace experience through an unpaid work placement and will have access to one-on-one career counselling throughout the program.

Contact: Paul Zanettos, Media Relations Consultant
Phone: (416) 415-5000 Ext. 3428
E-mail: pzanetto@georgebrown.ca
Website: www.georgebrown.ca

Mohawk College
Health Sector Pre-Bridging Language Acquisition Project

This project helps participants prepare to enter health sector bridging projects by improving their language from CLB 5 to CLB 7. Four online modules of fifty hours each will help participants develop language skills and improve interpersonal communications by presenting material in a Canadian health care context.

Contact:
Muzeria Nuredini
Phone: 905-575-2024
Email: muzeria.nuredini@mohawkcollege.ca

College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO)
Communication and Cultural Competence (CCC) Project
This project is developing a website which illustrates the Considerations of Legal, Ethical and Organization (CLEO) aspects of the practice of medicine, which are a component of the Medical Council of Canada’s (MCC) evaluating examination. The project is designed to provide web-based medical literacy and educational tools to address the communication needs of international medical graduates who wish to apply to one of Ontario’s programs for entry to medical practice.

Contact the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario here.

Regulatory Body

College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario
80 College Street
Toronto, ON M5G 2E2
Phone: (416) 967-2603
Toll free 1-800-268-7096
Fax: (416) 961-3330
Email: feedback@cpso.on.ca
Website: www.cpso.on.ca

Learning More

To learn about occupations in Canada, visit the Working in Canada website. This site will help you identify the name of your occupation in Canada. It will also give you important information about your profession in many regions of Canada, including job duties, skill requirements and wage rates. To learn about your occupation, visit the website and click the ‘Start’ button on the main page.

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