Despite MD shortages, they still can't practise; Foreign-trained doctors frustrated with system The Windsor Star
Thu 04 Apr 2002 - NEWS - A1 / Front
Veronique Mandal Star Health-Science Reporter
More than a hundred foreign-trained physicians are languishing in Windsor, begging for hospital residency positions that are going unfilled while the province is crippled by a doctor shortage.
In recent weeks, many of them applied to the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CARMS), but only one received a placement -- in Alberta.
The foreign-trained physicians include family doctors, orthopedic specialists, gynecologists, endocrinologists and pediatricians.
Not only have they earned medical degrees in their own countries, they also have specialty certifications from Canada and the U.S.
They've also spent time and money, taking examinations to make them eligible for a residency program.
Wednesday, four of the doctors talked about the agony of receiving "you were not chosen" letters, the thousands of dollars spent on exams and the despair of being forced to spend their lives working in computer stores and convenience stores or driving cabs -- or not working at all.
Together they've spent about $50,000 writing exams and taking courses.
"There are 53 vacant residencies in Ontario. There are hundreds of us in the province. why aren't we given a chance?" said Nabil Asfour, 30, who as a small boy came to Windsor from the Middle East with his parents.
Asfour graduated from the University of Windsor with a degree in biology. He applied to medical school in Canada and was told he'd be placed on a waiting list for an unspecified period of time. Instead of waiting, he went to study in the Dominican Republic.
"I knew others from Canada and the U.S. who went there and I asked if I would be able to come back to do a residency," said Asfour. "They told me yes, but now I may never practise here."
Asfour volunteered in a medical clinic for six months but makes a living managing a computer store.
Along with friends Tahir Gillan, 44, Nisreen Toma, 42 and Ahmad Chaker, 42, Asfour wrote part 1 of the Licensing Medical Council of Canada (LMCC) exams in November.
They also applied to be admitted to the Ontario residency program, only to be thwarted by a computer glitch.
"They switched to a computer for marking the exams and we were told they couldn't get the scores out," said Asfour. "Time was passing and we needed the scores to send to the residency program. Then we all got letters telling us we had no standing because of the computer glitch. Now we have to wait another year to reapply."
Toma wipes the tears from her eyes as she listens to Asfour. A senior gynecologist for 20 years in her native Iraq, Toma has been trying to get into any type of medical program for more than three years.
Like her colleagues, she's passed the licence evaluation exam which allowed her to write the medical licensing exam. She also accompanied them to Toronto every Sunday to take a course for foreign medical graduates.
"We left Sunday at 5 a.m. and returned 10 p.m. at night," said Toma. "We did that for five months and paid a fee of $2,000. We will do anything to be able to practise as doctors again."
Gillan, a veterinarian and medical doctor, rewrote the exam and passed, but was refused a residency program.
"Now I'm told I have to do a 12-month post-graduate training in order to do part two of the LMCC, but I can't get into a post-graduate program," said Gillan. "I would have to apply somewhere out of the country but I have a family to support."
Chaker, an orthopedic specialist from Iraq, earned a fellowship in sports medicine from Alberta, other certificates from the U.S. and lectured in his field across the globe.
"I used to think our chances of getting a residency would be about five to 10 per cent. now I know it's zero," said Chaker. "It's been more than three years. I'm going to leave."
With Chaker's departure, not only will the city lose a potential medical specialist, it will also lose a practising pharmacist. Unlike Chaker, his wife simply had to write the Canadian qualifying exams and was given a licence to practise.
The doctors -- who say they are willing to sign 10-year agreements to practise in Windsor -- have been shocked by the attitude of the medical licensing officials, said Asfour.
"We were told we were not accepted and not to write asking questions because they would not answer us. "
Across the country, 200 to 300 or more international medical graduates (IMG) apply for a CARMS match. only 50 are chosen.
In Ontario, the College of Physicians and Surgeons has recently set up a fast-track program for IMGs.
Dr. Paul Ziter suspects the residency positions go unfilled for financial reasons, since a doctor in practice will bill the system $500,000 to $1 million a year, which includes billing for tests.
Ministry of Health spokesman Gordon Haugh said they are equally frustrated and want to see more doctors going through the fast-track program.
The president of the Essex County Medical Society, Albert Ng, said while everyone realizes the need to ensure the quality of medical doctors, the system of evaluation is too antiquated.