Why aren't Alberta's family medicine training spots being snapped up?

Jennifer Lee · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 12, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

The caput of the Alberta Medical Association says she's disquieted astir the fig of unfilled household medicine residency positions successful the state this year.

There are 31 vacant spots astatine Alberta's 2 aesculapian schools.

The University of Calgary, which is increasing its grooming seats this year, accounts for the lion's stock of those openings.

"It is simply a spot concerning … that our younger health-care radical aren't wanting to spell into household medicine," said Dr. Shelley Duggan, president of the Alberta Medical Association (AMA).

Each twelvemonth astatine this time, aesculapian schoolhouse graduates are matched with residency programs astir the country.

The archetypal circular of matching for this twelvemonth was completed past week.

At that time, 27 of the University of Calgary's 104 household medicine spots were unfilled. That's the highest fig of vacant positions (at this constituent successful the process) successful the past 20 years.

Four of the University of Alberta's 73 spots stay unfilled.

"The health-care strategy successful Alberta is rather unstable close present and I deliberation that's impacting people's decisions," said Duggan.

Citing the numbers successful a caller missive to AMA members, Duggan said she's disquieted astir recruitment and retention of doctors successful the province.

The matching, conducted by the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS), is done successful 2 rounds. 

According to service, 9.3 per cent of positions remained unfilled nationally aft the archetypal circular this year.

At the University of Calgary, 26 per cent stay vacant. At the U of A, it's 5.5 per cent.

CaRMS uses an algorithm that factors successful an individual's apical picks for specialty and location. It besides factors in university preferences.

The leap successful vacancies astatine the University of Calgary comes during a twelvemonth when 16 much household medicine residency seats were added.

• Alberta has 22 household medicine residency grooming positions inactive unfilled
• Alberta doctors dependable alarm implicit debased fig of grads seeking residency successful province

"We conscionable expanded successful this existent year, truthful I think that's a large portion of having a small spot much spots open, for sure," said Dr. Martina Barton, post-graduate manager for the household medicine residency programs astatine the University of Calgary. 

"I'm conscionable excited we person growth. We request household doctors. It's a large specialty to beryllium in. We evidently request to code the request successful society, and I consciousness we are doing everything we tin to bash that."

According to Barton, the assemblage filled each of its 21 agrarian grooming positions, successful Lethbridge and Medicine Hat, an betterment implicit immoderate erstwhile years.

'National trend'

"There are dwindling numbers of residents that are presently applying to household medicine arsenic a archetypal circular prime and … this is simply a nationalist trend," said Dr. Pauwlina Cyca, president of the Professional Association of Resident Physicians of Alberta.

She points to CaRMS information showing the University of Ottawa has 42 unfilled spots successful its household medicine programs and Queen's University has 29 vacant seats, for example.

"There are less radical applying to household medicine. However, the radical who are applying to household medicine are the radical who privation to beryllium there," said Cyca.

She hosted an online predisposition for incoming residents the time aft they were matched to the University of Calgary.

"Even though the numbers are fewer, the prime of the applicants successful presumption of their engagement and the thrust to beryllium portion of household medicine, from my assessment, seems mode higher than previously."

Other factors could beryllium astatine play arsenic well, she said.

Alberta announced  a caller wage woody for nonmigratory physicians past year. And, aft repeated calls from the Alberta Medical Association, the state besides announced a caller wage exemplary for household physicians successful December.

Cyca believes it volition instrumentality clip for those changes to play retired successful the lucifer numbers.

Meanwhile, Barton hopes the U of C volition beryllium capable to capable each of its spots done the 2nd circular of matching.

"Historically, we person had precise excellent, beardown applicants that travel successful done the 2nd iteration."

If they don't capable up, she said they tin consider people who privation to transportation successful from different specialties.

In a statement, the wellness minister's bureau called concerns astir unfilled seats "exaggerated and distorted."

A spokeperson said Alberta accounts for a smaller proportionality of Canada's unfilled positions (after the archetypal round) this twelvemonth compared to 2024 and pointed to the summation successful household medicine seats as a cardinal crushed for the vacancies.

"It's not astonishing that determination is immoderate lag successful uptake arsenic each jurisdictions are challenged to pull residents into household medicine. We're assured that astir oregon each of the unfilled seats volition beryllium filled successful the 2nd round; past twelvemonth we filled each but 1 household medicine spot successful Round 2," the connection said successful part.

"Given the summation successful disposable spots and the challenges successful household medicine nationwide, the archetypal circular of results this twelvemonth is simply a measurement forward. Alberta's authorities volition proceed moving intimately with the University of Calgary to research options to capable immoderate remaining positions aft the 2nd circular of matching for aesculapian residency positions takes spot successful April."

Data provided by CaRMS shows the U of C did capable each its household medicine positions by the extremity of the 2nd round between 2016 and 2021. There were 4 unfilled spots successful 2022, 7 successful 2023 and 1 past year.

The University of Alberta likewise filled each its spots betwixt 2016 and 2021 aft the 2nd iteration. In 2022, it had 7 unfilled spots. There were 15 unfilled successful 2023 and zero past year.

The results for the 2nd circular volition beryllium announced connected April 17.