Annual residency scramble near completion
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* Roger Collier

*   © 2008 Canadian Medical Association

Although a record 353 international medical school graduates found positions in the 2008 residency match as provinces slowly moved to fulfill commitments to expand slots for those educated or trained abroad, some 946 international graduates and an estimated 85 Canadian medical school graduates are scrambling for the remaining 121 spots available in the annual competition.

The remaining spots are projected to be filled by mid-June. Canadian Resident Match Service Executive-Director Sandra Banner says that 2 of the spots are specifically designated for international graduates, while the remaining 119 are open to either Canadian or international graduates.

Banner said that 4% of 2143 Canadian applicants remain unmatched after the first 2 iterations. That translates into 85 graduates. In theory, they have the upper hand in the competition for the remaining unmatched 121 residency slots as all Canadian medical school graduates are guaranteed residency spots, if they desire them. That leaves only 36 still up for grabs by international graduates.

Banner says that about half of the international medical graduates who found positions, and 31% of the Canadian graduates, will pursue residencies in family practice. Last year, 29% of Canadian medical school graduates made that choice. The percentage has consistently hovered around 30% in recent years. The numbers for specialities were not available as of *CMAJ*'s press deadline but apparently are also consistent with previous years.

“The match is pretty predictable for Canadians,” Banner said, adding that the picture is improving for international graduates. “One of the things we can all be comfortable with is that the commitment to ensuring there are positions for international medical graduates in our system is stabilizing.”

Overall, the number of available residencies was the highest ever. On July 1, 2008, 2478 medical school graduates will begin post-graduate training, breaking the previous record of 2337, set last year. The 353 placements from foreign medical schools eclipsed last year's record of 298.

“Each of the provinces has made a firm commitment to funding positions for international graduates,” Banner said.

Canadian medical school applicants to the 2008 match tallied 2134, of which 96% found positions. Of those, about 87% were accepted into 1 of their top-3 choices of residency programs with respect to location and discipline. A total of 1299 internationally trained medical school graduates applied for residencies. Of those matched, about 23% were accepted into 1 of their top-3 program choices.

Of the 121 remaining residency positions, most are in family medicine, Banner said. “Forty percent of our positions were in family medicine, so, naturally, the bulk of our positions that went unfilled were in family medicine.”