According to Ontario’s Ministry of Health, new legislation aims to have more health care provided by internationally trained health professionals. As a result of this legislation along with Laurel Broten’s plan, aspiring doctors and practitioners will be able to start providing their health services much sooner than ever before. The legislation is beneficial to both health professionals (23 regulated health professionals) and the province itself (over 5,000 internationally trained professionals are practicing in Ontario). The act is just one step that McGuinty’s Government is taking as part of a process in providing more opportunities to internationally trained doctors, practitioners, and physicians.
Over the course of last summer, the McGuinty government in partnership with The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario focused on regulatory changes aimed at improving the transitional practices for foreign-trained doctors. The plan, which is based on the Report on Removing Barriers for International Medical Doctors by Etobicoke-Lakeshore MPP Laurel Broten, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, outlines five recommendations on how to increase the number of internationally-trained medical doctors in Ontario.
This new legislation is attempting to meet the needs of patients unattached to a doctor, reduce wait times and provide healthcare closer to patients’ homes.