In 2015, just as Nova Scotia Health was formed, other changes were taking place within health systems across the country.

A long standing program that provided a pathway for foreign trained doctors to practice medicine in Canada was sidelined with plans from each province to retool and improve at a future date.

“The Clinical Assessment for Practice Program (CAPP) was the only program to allow for international medical graduates in family medicine to practice in Nova Scotia. In the last five years of the CAPP program 49 family medicine specialists were recruited to the province. Losing the program was a major loss for our ability to recruit – especially in our hard-to-recruit areas,” said Grayson Fulmer, senior director of Medical Affairs.

In 2016, shortly after assuming the provincial responsibility for physician recruitment, Fulmer and Nova Scotia Health physician leadership brought partners together to discuss the creation of a practice ready assessment program.

The new program would be housed at Dalhousie University’s Department of Family Medicine and supported by Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia, and Nova Scotia Health.

It was a true partnership that took just short of two years to move into creation.

In the summer of 2019, Nova Scotia Health’s physician recruitment team welcomed the first candidates to tour the province and select the sites where they would work.

“We had an important role to play in this partnership, “said Katrina Philopoulos, director of Physician Recruitment.

“We hosted our candidates for a week and showed what we had to offer in our rural placements. I think it is fair to say that our candidates were charmed by the communities around the province. We had a lot of fun with the physicians, blending the introduction to practice environments with social activities like patio lunches, boat tours and events with local physicians.”

This past fall, five candidates began their assessments in Nova Scotia, some arriving with their families in tow.

Candidates came from a myriad of backgrounds across Canada. They each participated in two six-week clinical field assessments and then, if successful, were offered a return for service back to their chosen community.

In March, Nova Scotia Health welcomed four physicians from this program to practices in Hubbards, New Glasgow, Glace Bay and Truro.

With COVID-19, plans for the spring 2020 cohort of candidate assessments were deferred but will resume in fall 2020.

Once fully running, the program has space to welcome 10 candidates for assessment each year.