Preparing and certifying the family physicians that Canada needs

Educational PurposeIn response to the current health system crisis with an extreme shortage of family physicians, and based on consultation with our educational community, the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) has developed an Educational Action Plan (EAP) based on four educational priorities.

The EAP will guide educational activities at the CFPC and is designed in the spirit of continuous improvement and social accountability with a plan to evaluate residency program and health system outcomes and influences which will inform future iterations.

Read more about the Educational Action Plan
 

The CFPC is stepping up to help solve the family physician recruitment, retention and capacity needs in Canada. Education matters!

The CFPC is the educational standard setting and certifying body for family medicine representing over 45,000 members. We support family medicine teaching and research and advocate on behalf of the specialty of family medicine, family physicians, and the patients they serve. 

Through these roles, we help to shape the health workforce.  The EAP is centred on our purpose to prepare and certify the family physicians that Canada needs in support of the Quintuple Aim to improve patient experience, population health, provider well-being, value, and health equity.   

The need is great to improve the number, mix, distribution and capacity of family physicians in Canada and governments have expanded and opened new medical schools with the aim of addressing the shortage. But increased positions alone will not guarantee more family physicians.   The CFPC seeks to work with its academic partners to improve the success of these initiatives.

 

a collage of many peopleWe can’t do it alone! 

We will engage with CFPC members and committees, universities, medical organizations, regulators, governments and patient partners in several key educational activities aimed at improving recruitment, retention and capacity of family physicians working in Canada.





 

Educational Roadmap

Through in-depth research and consultation, we were able to discover and define what is needed to strengthen family medicine education. The CFPC’s primary responsibility is to maintain and uphold an appropriately high and rigorous standard for training that keeps up with the times and prepares the next generation of family physicians.
 

Who are the family physicians that Canada needs now and into the future?

What are we aiming for in family medicine residency training?

How are we doing relative to this?

What is our plan for educational improvement?


Debunking OTP Myths: Spotlighting real solutions

To enhance your understanding of the OTP, we have gathered and addressed the most prevalent misconceptions making sure you have a clear perspective of how transformative the project will be for our profession.

 
     

    Myth 1: A three-year residency will undermine the profession and drive people away from becoming family doctors.

  • Fact: A three-year renewed residency will not create a gap year without graduates. Full stop.

    • The three-year renewed residency will be phased in gradually starting in 2027.
    • In a renewed three-year residency, our aim is to have residents in their transitional phase of training provide service in needed areas with a commitment to underserved communities and unattached patients.
    • The three-year renewed residency will better prepare graduates to practice anywhere, ideally in a team setting, and adjust to the changing role of family physicians. This will increase:
      • Health workforce capacity
      • Efficiency and care coordination that may reduce referrals
      • High-quality primary care and help managing complex, chronic illness

  • Fact: A three-year renewed residency will strengthen training.

    Family physicians are certified by the CFPC to practice. We know that there are competencies that many programs are not able to tackle or strengthen because of time constraints. With a three-year residency, curriculum enhancement will include the following topics, which are aligned with societal needs:
    • Home and long-term care
    • Addiction and mental health care
    • Emergency/acute care medicine
    • Indigenous health
    • Health equity and anti-racism
    • Virtual care and health informatics (digital health)

  • Fact: Being a family doctor is hard but one of the most rewarding medical careers.

    The role of family physicians is evolving as we provide more complex care. We hope to attract medical students who are interested in full-scope practice. We do not want to maintain a two-year residency simply to be the shortest available option. Family medicine is not for everyone, but it is a rewarding career for someone who:
    • Values relationships and whole person care
    • Offers versatility and adaptiveness
    • Enjoys diagnostic puzzles and possesses impeccable clinical acumen
    • Values community life, seeks to overcome inequities, and improve health conditions
    • Thrives as a collaborative leader in a health care team

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    Myth 2: There was no reason to implement a three-year renewed residency now. We should have waited.

  • Fact: There is a crisis in family medicine. The status quo is no longer an option.

    The CFPC’s Prescription for Primary Care identifies solutions to meet the needs of Canada’s health care systems and help solve the crisis in family medicine. One of the key solutions includes education reform. This is the current work of the OTP, which is funded by the Team Primary Care: Training for Transformation initiative (TPC). OTP is one of TPC’s 20 practitioner-specific training projects, which aims to change the practice environment and strengthen residency training, helping to achieve the Patient’s Medical Home vision.

  • Fact: Transformative change takes time. We cannot wait.

    The recommended changes to residency training are complex and will take multiple years to implement. See our project roadmap. Waiting would only prolong the current crisis in family medicine. The urgency to get started dovetails with the urgency of health system change and addressing physician well-being.

  • Fact: The needs of patients are changing and becoming more complex.

    Millions of people in Canada do not have a family doctor and managing the needs of communities is becoming increasingly complex. To better serve our communities and prioritize physicians’ well-being, we need comprehensive team-based care. With a three-year residency, future physicians will be able to work in a team-based model and offer care that meets the needs of today’s patients.


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    Myth 3: The CFPC is not basing these decisions on robust evidence and they did not consult broadly.

  • Fact: The CFPC spent four years researching and consulting with a range of interest holders.

    The CFPC has:
    • Consulted with more than 500 interest holders across more than 175 activities. This includes:
      • Field research with more than 300 practicing family physicians, including rural physicians. Analysis also included residents and medical students.
      • Multiple expert panels with members who are teachers and educational leaders.
      • Discussions with Chapters, the academic community, regulators and decision makers across Canada.
    • Consulted with the Board regarding the proposed changes on a regular basis.
    • Conducted multiple literature searches (resulting in more than 25,000 reviewed articles) and assessed 25 different data sets (national, provincial, electronic medical records).
    Our research findings can be found in these in our related resources and evidence summaries.

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