Can Canadian US trained ophthalmologists practice in Canada?

[jhenerose88]

How would a US trained (med school + residency in the US) ophthalmologist who is Canadian come back to practice in Canada? Is it possible?

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[Doc320]

Yes, but it requires much advanced planning. The subject is so complex, it might not be covered well in one post. The main problem is that US ophthalmology residencies are 4 years but Canadian are 5 years. Fellowships generally don't count as an additional year. Some ways around it include having a special arrangement to do an extra year of residency, go to the rare residency that has a separate chief resident year that is an extra year, becoming US board certified then becoming a FACS and with that, be able to practice.

The main stumbling block is the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons. People should talk with them. The FACS route is not through them but through certain provinces. Certain provinces also have a way for US trained ophthalmologists to work in a medical school, much like in many states, foreign medical graduates who did a foreign residency can sometimes practice in an academic setting.

Justin xxxxxxx is an idiot. Effective January 1, 2023 and for 2 years, non-Canadians are banned from buying a house. He might extend that beyond 2 years. That violates the USMCA and NAFTA treaties. Justin is really ridiculous and also likes to break treaties. So if you're an American and want to practice in Canada, be prepared to either rent, be homeless, or live in an igloo (and eat poutine and drink Moose beer). In contrast, American are nice to Canadians and place zero restrictions on them buying a house. Canadians don't have to pay a high tax imposed on foreigners, including Americans, when buying a house, which was legal until December 31. 2022.

The quest for US trained ophthalmologists to practice in Canada is complex. A fair number of Canadians hate Americans, unknown to Americans. No Americans hate Canada. You can see it in the TV news where swipes at the US, even liberal President Biden, is common. On the other hand, practice in Canada can be rewarding because Canadians tolerate long waiting lists for cataract surgery, office overhead in Canada is lower, fewer malpractice lawsuits and small awards, etc. In Canada, if you're in the bigger cities, you can legally ban young ophthalmologists from operating so you get all the surgery for yourself. That's how Canadian doctors survive with low reimbursement for office visits. America will eventually be in trouble because Medicare will cut reimbursements yet the high cost of running an American medical practice will remain.

 

[Doc320]

Another thing is that there is the feeling that illegal old exam questions are essential to pass the Canadian Royal College exams. That's what makes Americans different from Canadians. Americans are ethical and honest and do not violate their pledge not to write down old ABO questions. Ask any recent diplomate and their lips are sealed as are mine. Canadians are not like that. If a Canadian is trained in the US, they may lack contacts to get the old Canadian questions and find it much harder to pass. This kind of unethical mentality carries on to Justin xxxxxxx and why he is an idiot, passing ridiculous laws. I am not anti Liberal Party. I support Marc Garneau and Joyce Murray to be Prime Minister and lead the Liberal Party.

Not only is the Canadian Royal College written exam different but so is the oral exam. The oral exam requires one to talk longer and in much more depth but with fewer questions. Their exam is only 2 hours, versus 3 hours for the US.

 

[i-doctor]

Canadians are halfway between Americans and Europeans. Not as honest and innocent as Americans, but not quite as jaded, cynical, and corrupt as Europeans.

 

[Slide]

Americans are ethical and honest and do not violate their pledge not to write down old ABO questions. Ask any recent diplomate and their lips are sealed as are mine.

Oh, you sweet summer child...

I have no beef or stance in the US/Canada reciprocities or which credentialing system is superior but let's not overstate how we Americans are role models 😆.

Edit: last statement taken out by request.

 

[KHE]

Justin xxxxxxx is an idiot. Effective January 1, 2023 and for 2 years, non-Canadians are banned from buying a house. He might extend that beyond 2 years. That violates the USMCA and NAFTA treaties. Justin is really ridiculous and also likes to break treaties. So if you're an American and want to practice in Canada, be prepared to either rent, be homeless, or live in an igloo (and eat poutine and drink Moose beer). In contrast, American are nice to Canadians and place zero restrictions on them buying a house. Canadians don't have to pay a high tax imposed on foreigners, including Americans, when buying a house, which was legal until December 31. 2022.

I grew up in Niagara Falls, Canada but have lived and practice in the USA for many years.

I'm no fan of Justin Trudeau. But....

Last January, my mom passed away. My sister and I made the decision to sell our childhood home. I grew up in a neighborhood that was....to say blue collar....generous. It was more like a brown collar neighborhood. 1/4 mile from the Niagara Falls waste water treatment center.

The house I grew up in was a 950 square foot bungalow. Maybe a 1/6th of an acre. It was on the market for less than a week. We got 18 offers with more than half of them coming from foreign residents and most of them around 50% MORE THAN ASKING.

I'm getting a bit older now and I did think for a while about perhaps moving back to my old home town when I retired and perhaps even into my childhood home. Unfortunately, mom passed a bit too soon and I can't let that house sit empty for the years it would take and I didn't want to rent it out. I wouldn't have done that to the neighbors, many of home are original home owners from the 1970s.

What that house sold for was MORE than my 2800 square foot on an acre and a half in Connecticut, where I live now cost. Even if I WAS ready to retire, I COULD NOT AFFORD TO BUY OUT MY SISTER'S HALF.

I would NOT BE ABLE TO AFFORD to buy ONE HALF of my childhood home. And even if I could, if I did buy it, my parents would rise from the grave and smack me in the head for paying that amount of money for that house.

The point is.....that is simply not sustainable. Home ownership is one of the biggest paths to wealth building and if Canadians in general and young Canadians in particular are going to be shut out of that opportunity en masse, that is not a good thing. That house was a perfect starter home. It should not be an "investment property."

 

[Slide]

I grew up in Niagara Falls, Canada but have lived and practice in the USA for many years.

I'm no fan of Justin Trudeau. But....

Last January, my mom passed away. My sister and I made the decision to sell our childhood home. I grew up in a neighborhood that was....to say blue collar....generous. It was more like a brown collar neighborhood. 1/4 mile from the Niagara Falls waste water treatment center.

The house I grew up in was a 950 square foot bungalow. Maybe a 1/6th of an acre. It was on the market for less than a week. We got 18 offers with more than half of them coming from foreign residents and most of them around 50% MORE THAN ASKING.

I'm getting a bit older now and I did think for a while about perhaps moving back to my old home town when I retired and perhaps even into my childhood home. Unfortunately, mom passed a bit too soon and I can't let that house sit empty for the years it would take and I didn't want to rent it out. I wouldn't have done that to the neighbors, many of home are original home owners from the 1970s.

What that house sold for was MORE than my 2800 square foot on an acre and a half in Connecticut, where I live now cost. Even if I WAS ready to retire, I COULD NOT AFFORD TO BUY OUT MY SISTER'S HALF.

I would NOT BE ABLE TO AFFORD to buy ONE HALF of my childhood home. And even if I could, if I did buy it, my parents would rise from the grave and smack me in the head for paying that amount of money for that house.

The point is.....that is simply not sustainable. Home ownership is one of the biggest paths to wealth building and if Canadians in general and young Canadians in particular are going to be shut out of that opportunity en masse, that is not a good thing. That house was a perfect starter home. It should not be an "investment property."

This isn't related to ophthalmology of course, but this is also happening in Vancouver, BC, as well as I suspect many other places in Canada. Specifically, lots of overseas (Chinese) investors are creating the housing squeeze.

 

[Doc320]

This isn't related to ophthalmology of course, but this is also happening in Vancouver, BC, as well as I suspect many other places in Canada. Specifically, lots of overseas (Chinese) investors are creating the housing squeeze.

This is what some people think but it's not true.

Politicians accused Chinese of buying property and leaving it empty. The local government in Vancouver started an empty homes tax. The province of British Columbia jumped on the bandwagon. The leftist NDP in BC (more left than the BC Liberals) started a speculation tax. That was a yearly tax on not only empty homes but even homes and condos occupied by families but whose husband of the household was not living in BC (like foreign students whose parents bought a condo). On top of that, a foreign buyer's tax of 25% in Ontario and 20% in BC was started. That did not make rent any cheaper despite promises by the politicians.

The problem is not foreign buyers but massive red tape to build in Canada. BC just introduced a new bureaucracy to make a one stop shop instead of several ministries holding up construction. However, it doesn't address a thicket of bylaws that cities, like Vancouver, does that stymies housing.

Why do I know this? Because I once thought "if so-and-so is elected, I'll move to Canada" only to find out that Canada is a hateful country with a chip on its shoulder and governments that like to bully people. (I did not complete a move to Canada after knowing more) Yet, it doesn't know how to get Covid vaccine quickly, lagging America for months. In fact, the 2nd dose of vaccine is not 3 or 4 weeks after the first but their package insert is 56 days after the first dose. Science? No, rationing. In BC, Paxlovid is practically banned. You have to be age 70 or older to get it unless you have some serious medical conditions, then you have to be at least 50 years old. BC wants you to die. If you are 49, you cannot get Paxlovid, even if you are willing to pay $1 million. Banned. BC does not have universal health care. It has universal health non-care.