President's message
Portable licensure: the law of the land!
Peter Hutten-Czapski, MD
Haileybury, Ont.
CJRM 2001;6(2):93-4.
Once upon a time in a land far, far away physicians were allowed to wander at will from one licensing jurisdiction to another. They freely crossed internal borders to work unhampered by any concerns about licensing. And it was good. There were as many competent doctors before such freedoms were granted as after. The licensing authorities (LAs) had less paperwork to do. Rural communities desperate for physicians could recruit beyond the limits of their internal borders, without fear of having a competent applicant blocked.
No matter how idyllically impossible it sounds, the country exists. It is Australia. By virtue of an internal trade law, physicians were granted portability of licensure in 1992.1,2 What is relevant to Canadians is that a similar agreement has been passed here in Canada.3 An interjurisdictional agreement in July 1995 guarantees that physicians can freely move from province to province to make a living.
The 1995 Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT) was written "to enable any worker [including physicians] qualified for an occupation in one part of Canada to have access to employment opportunities within that occupation in any other province or territory."3 The AIT specifies that "occupational standards that have been established in those territories [provinces] shall, . . . be considered mutually acceptable . . .".4
Oh, is something wrong? Is a physician's competency, as assessed by one province, still being routinely challenged in another? Are you telling me physicians are still being prevented from even locuming in other provinces? Are physicians still taking out, or maintaining, multiple licences because they're unsure of getting them back if they let them lapse? Is no one aware of the law? These are concerns that rural physicians have passed on to us.
Our collective experience is that many restrictions remain. The Society of Rural Physicians of Canada (SRPC) has had much correspondence with the Federation of Medical Licensing Authorities of Canada, listing our concerns over the last 5 years. As of their last writing, their intent is this: "Each LA will continue to review each applicant in the normal fashion. No new license would be approved automatically or solely on the basis of holding a licence in another jurisdiction."5
This is not what rural doctors have been asking for. The SRPC is establishing a Legal Defence Fund to defend the right of doctors to free mobility to the extent guaranteed by law.
If you are having difficulty getting status in another province, tell us, and we can put pressure on to help. If you wish to help in this good work, join the Society or renew your membership and mark an additional $75 or more for the Legal Defence Fund (see the journal's carrier card for further membership information). We are protecting your right to earn a living.
Correspondence to: phc@srpc.ca
References
- Medical practitioners who hold registration in another state or territory in Australia (mutual recognition). In: New South Wales Medical Board: registration policies and information. Gladesville (NSW): New South Wales Medical Board; 1992.
- Mutual recognition of doctors. In: New South Wales Medical Board: registration policies and information. Gladesville (NSW): New South Wales Medical Board; 1992.
- Labour mobility. In: Agreement on Internal Trade. Ottawa: Industry Canada; 1995.
- Labour mobility. Annex 708: Occupational qualifications and standards. Part 1. Recognition of occupational qualifications and reconciliation of occupational standards. In: Agreement on Internal Trade. Ottawa: Industry Canada; 1995.
- Letter from Dr. Gary G. Johnson, Executive Director, Federation of Medical Licensing Authorities of Canada, to Dr. Peter Hutten-Czapski, President, Society of Rural Physicians of Canada; 2001 Jan 22.
