This article appeared in the Winnipeg Free Press, on Tuesday, April 15, 2025

By Dr. Randy Guzman

Manitoba is still in the middle of a severe physician shortage with the second-lowest number of doctors per capita in Canada.

For patients, this can mean challenges finding a family doctor or unreasonably long wait times in the ER, seeing a specialist or getting a test or surgery. For the doctors we do have, it means unsustainable workloads and high rates of burnout. This problem has been building for years. In fact, over the last two decades, Manitoba has had the lowest growth in physicians of any province. Thankfully, the situation is improving and recruitment this year is shaping up to be much better.

But we need to see recruitment increase much faster for patients to see and feel the impact. This includes retaining more of our graduates, repatriating those studying outside of Manitoba, and attracting more out-of-province physicians, including from the U.S.

Right now, we have a ripe and rare opportunity to attract doctors from south of our border who are dismayed with the uncertainty posed by U.S. President Donald Trump. This is especially true in states that are limiting physicians’ ability to offer evidence-based medicine in areas like reproductive health, gender-affirming care or medical assistance in dying. Manitoba is a great choice for them, offering economic stability, excellent quality of life and a health-care system where the government stays out of the patient-doctor relationship.

At Doctors Manitoba, we saw this opportunity emerging late last year. That’s why we created a U.S. recruitment campaign shortly after the election that placed ads in several states and established a website for doctors to learn more. To be clear, it’s not the role of Doctors Manitoba to recruit, but we are taking this step because the shortage in Manitoba is still the top concern for physicians across the province.

Our nationally recognized recruitment campaign is drumming up interest, but we fear Manitoba will lose out as potential recruits find an easier pathway to licensure and better incentives in other provinces. Nationally, the Medical Council of Canada confirms a sixfold increase in American doctors inquiring about moving to Canada. Although this is promising, Manitoba has not seen a jump in physicians obtaining a licence just yet.

We were very encouraged last week to hear Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara commit to Manitoba intensifying recruitment efforts in the U.S. as part of the government’s plan to add 400 more doctors to Manitoba. It was great to hear from Premier Wab Kinew that provincial officials are actively talking to six physicians right now. These are positive steps, to be sure. Now, to ensure all these efforts are successful, we offer the following advice to ensure, as the Canadian Medical Association says, the U.S. ​“brain drain” turns into a Manitoba ​“brain gain.”

First, Manitoba needs to simplify recognizing U.S. medical credentials. Several provinces, most notably Nova Scotia, Ontario and B.C., have developed accelerated processes for board-certified U.S. physicians to transfer their medical licences. This acknowledges their training and licensing is very similar to Canada’s and avoids the time and cost of exams, supervision and other steps that international physicians usually face.

Second, Manitoba’s recruitment incentives and relocation assistance are not competitive with other provinces. On top of this, Manitoba has traditionally approached recruitment for all health professionals the same way, whereas other provinces use a tailored approach that recognizes physicians need different information and support than other health-care workers. Other provinces also seem to be very well organized with prompt job offers and clear contracts, whereas in Manitoba, it can take weeks, even months, to finalize an offer, risking losing out on a potential recruit.

Third, we strongly recommend that the provincial resources and incentives, currently limited to doctor recruitment into regional health authorities, should be extended to independent physician practices trying to recruit into their clinics. After all, doctors are the best doctor recruiters.

These efforts will complement strong steps we’ve seen the province take over the last two years, including expanding medical school and residency spaces and introducing new payment models that help doctors spend more time with their patients. These are solid longer-term solutions, and we hope to see the province embrace our advice on U.S. recruitment as part of a strong shorter-term strategy to bring experienced physicians to our communities. Let’s ensure Manitoba has its elbows up to avoid being outmanoeuvred by other provinces during this rare opportunity.

Dr. Randy Guzman is the president of Doctors Manitoba.