Graduates in medicine continue to shun family medicine in Quebec. No less than 99 family medicine residency positions affiliated with Quebec universities remain vacant after the first round of matching by CaRMS, the pan-Canadian organization responsible for the operation. A result as bad as last year.
“It’s worrying,” said the president of the Federation of General Practitioners of Quebec (FMOQ), Dr.r Marc-Andre Amyot. His union says it is all the more concerned that the “political climate” has improved in the past year. “There are fewer “doctors bashing”, he observes. It’s a bit discouraging to see that the next generation isn’t there. »
Once again this year, the specialties are attracting more graduates in medicine. Only one position in anesthesiology at McGill University is unfilled following the first round of matching, as well as 11 positions in internal medicine at Université Laval. Family medicine is also less popular elsewhere in Canada: 169 places are vacant after the first round in the other provinces, compared to 71 in the specialties.
According to the Dr Amyot, Quebec medical students are put off by the administrative tasks of family medicine, which represent 20 to 25% of their time. “A medical student wants to do medicine, not paperwork,” he says. He adds that the pressure put on general practitioners is “enormous” since there is a shortage of “at least 1,100 family doctors” in the province. According to him, remuneration also weighs “a little bit in the balance”. This is “50% lower” than that of medical specialists, he points out.
The Dr Amyot expects many family medicine positions to go unfilled following the second round. This was the case last year with 65 vacancies. The results of the second round will be announced at the end of April.
Possible solutions
To encourage graduates to adopt family medicine, the FMOQ believes that it is necessary to review the operation of regional medical staffing plans (PREM), whose mission is to distribute physician positions throughout Quebec. Students complain that this system prevents them from working where they want.
The FMOQ proposes to rely on incentives so that new physicians practice in the regions. “One of the retention factors in remote regions is that the candidate comes from that region, explains the Dr Amyot. Isn’t it possible in the universities to ensure that contingents from these specific regions are admitted to medical schools? Can scholarships be given to medical students and residents as part of their training, subject to a commitment to work in the regions? »
The FMOQ intends to submit a detailed action plan to the government in the coming weeks. This will be based on the recommendations of its practice enhancement committee, made up of medical residents, students, representatives of the Ministry of Health and Social Services and a patient-partner. The Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, recently opened the door to the overhaul of PREMs.