{"id":736321,"date":"2026-06-14T14:19:11","date_gmt":"2026-06-14T14:19:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/736321\/"},"modified":"2026-06-14T14:19:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-14T14:19:11","slug":"canada-doctor-shortage-could-physicians-from-england-help-fill-the-gap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/736321\/","title":{"rendered":"Canada doctor shortage: Could physicians from England help fill the gap?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Doctors in the U.K. say a lack of available jobs and wage disputes are persuading them to take their skills to Canada. Adrian Ghobrial reports. <\/p>\n

TORONTO – Amid months of labour unrest in England, a new report published by the British Medical Journal (BMJ) <\/a>has revealed that doctors and medical specialists in that country are looking to make the jump across the Atlantic, with some eyeing a move to Canada to set up their practice.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s welcome news for those across Canada, who\u2019ve been struggling to get access to care.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Dr. Shani Datta, a psychiatrist who also sits on the British Medical Journal\u2019s specialists committee, says he\u2019s heard from numerous doctors who say they\u2019re looking to leave England, frustrated with wages, job security and available positions.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey leave for other countries; I\u2019ve had colleagues leave for Canada which is a very popular destination,\u201d said Datta during a recent British Medical Journal podcast. <\/p>\n

Hailing from Birmingham, England, Dr. Francis Okoroh made the jump to Toronto in 2024. He has since opened a family practice in the city\u2019s downtown core.<\/p>\n

\"\"Francis Okoroh Dr. Francis Okoroh moved to Canada from England in 2024 and has since opened a practice in the city’s downtown core. <\/p>\n

\u201cOver the 18 plus months I\u2019ve been here (in Canada), I\u2019ve been able to partner with others to open a clinic downtown. I feel that\u2019s something that just wouldn\u2019t be possible in the United Kingdom with all of the government red tape over there,\u201d said Dr. Okoroh.<\/p>\n

Okoroh says because of changes to public health in England, many medical school graduates can\u2019t find work, and when they do, their pay scale is low compared to other Western nations.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe main reason I moved (to Canada) is because I was worried about my job security (in England). I trained in the United Kingdom, (and) did my family medicine training in the U.K. I noticed towards the end of my time there, working in the Birmingham area, (that) it was becoming difficult to work the shifts that I wanted, and financially I was forced to look elsewhere,\u201d said Dr. Okoroh.<\/p>\n

This Monday, June 15, doctors in England will stage a walkout, marking the 16th time they\u2019ve held a similar job action during their long-running, months-long dispute with the government over wages and a lack of employment opportunities.<\/p>\n

\"\"Emergency room Emergency room physician Dr. Olivier Lavigueur works on a computer while providing care for patients in the emergency room at the Humber River Hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto on Tuesday, January 25, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Nathan Denette <\/p>\n

In Canada, the medical system is facing the opposite issue: not enough family doctors for patients across the country.<\/p>\n

As of 2025, a Health Canada report<\/a> revealed that Canada was short more than 22,800 family physicians. Dr. Okoroh sees international recruitment as part of the solution to get more highly skilled medical professionals working in the country, improving access to care.<\/p>\n

\u201cCanada has recently opened its doors to those from the U.K. (and) those from Australia who have a family physician qualification, meaning there aren\u2019t extra exams you have to take. That\u2019s a big incentive,\u201d said Okoroh.<\/p>\n

In December, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) launched targeted immigration measures <\/a>to boost Canada\u2019s supply of doctors. CTV News emailed IRCC asking how many physicians have been attracted to Canada this year as part of the program. The department didn\u2019t respond to the request before deadline.<\/p>\n

\"\"A member of a medical team prepares an MRI machine before a procedure at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Hospital on Tuesday May 1, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Chris Young A member of a medical team prepares an MRI machine before a procedure at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Hospital on Tuesday May 1, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Chris Young <\/p>\n

While doctors moving from England, Australia and elsewhere may help fill a critical gap in Canada\u2019s health-care system, Dr. Okoroh believes all levels of government need to proceed with caution.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe key thing that Canada obviously has to make sure is that the process to recruit doctors is rigorous, because you\u2019re trying to maintain a certain kind of quality of care in the country as well,\u201d said Dr. Okoroh.<\/p>\n

A new pipeline of professionals would be welcome news for patients facing Canada\u2019s shortage of family doctors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Doctors in the U.K. say a lack of available jobs and wage disputes are persuading them to take…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":736322,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[712,49,48,84,392],"class_list":["post-736321","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-healthcare","tag-apple-news","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-health","tag-healthcare"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/736321","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=736321"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/736321\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/736322"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=736321"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=736321"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=736321"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}