Physician Job Canada

The physician job Canada role includes counselor, healer, friend and in some communities even family member. Family practice doctors and general practitioners are often the first point of contact for people seeking health care, acting as the traditional family doctor. They assess and treat a wide range of conditions, ailments, and injuries, from sinus and respiratory infections to broken bones and scrapes.

Family and general practitioners typically have a patient base of regular, long-term visitors. Patients with more serious conditions are referred to specialists or other health care facilities for more intensive care.  They frequently care for families across several generations.


In Canada there are approximately 69,267 physicians.  Of these, 17,040 are General Practice doctors and 18,984 are Family Medicine Physicians. The rest are listed as doctors of various specialties. 

Working Conditions
physician job Canada Working conditions are usually pleasant with the work environment being indoors in well lighted exam rooms and hospitals.  Most often Canadian General Practice and Family Medicine physicians work an average of 50 hours a week and in some cases well over 60.

Physician Job Canada Training and Qualifications
Formal education and training requirements for physicians are among the most demanding of any occupation.  For the most part, they are required to have 4 years of undergraduate school, 4 years of medical school, and 3 to 8 years of internship and residency, this of course, depends totally on the specialty selected. A few medical schools offer combined undergraduate and medical school programs that last 6 rather than the customary 8 years.

Licensing and Credentials
In all Canadian provinces and territories physicians are regulated. The usual method to be a credentialed and licensed family or general physician is:
1) Possess the amount of training and/or a degree from an accredited school of medicine or osteopathy
2) Complete an accredited program of family or general practice
3) Pass a national exam
4) Apply for licensure in the province or territory where you plan to practice.

Socialized Medicine

Significant Points
Many Canadian physicians and surgeons work long hours with approximately one-third of them working 50 or more hours a week.


New physicians are much less likely to enter solo practice and more likely to work as salaried employees of group medical practices, clinics, hospitals, or health networks.

The outlook for physicians is projected to be very good.  Significant shortages exist in rural and underserved areas.  The trend towards group practices will provide opportunities for more doctors to hold positions of leadership and authority.  This still remains one of the best paying professions in the healthcare industry.