UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

After years of umming and ahhing about moving to Canada, I've decided as I can't shake the urge after 12 years, it is something I absolutely have to so to find out if it is right for me or not.

Now in my final months of GP training after also achieved CCT in medical specialty previously.

Also lone parent to one son who will come with me.

I have researched everything till I'm blue in the face but would love some actual recent experience tales from other GPs who made the move. Have been fixated on BC since a round-trip visit about 15 years ago. Have also been to NS and Ontario many times in that time.

I remember reading a post about BC and some other GP commented she moved to Moncton, NB and was enjoying it so since then I started looking at Moncton but now utterly confused.

We currently live on the west coast of Cumbria and are minimum 2 hours away from everything (originally a Scouser) so to me the "negatives" I've read about Moncton dont seem much different to where we are and I'm keen on the quiet, slower pace of life and the bilingual aspect (I speak French and my 3 year old also speaks a little and understands it though English is our first language).

I'll also mention I am of mixed Black African ethnicity and so is my son except he is darker than I am. Diversity is a concern as a small amount like we have here is probably enough but not looking for city levels like you might find in Manchester, Liverpool, or Birmingham.

Particularly keen to hear what life is like as a working family doctor and any chance of negotiating to bypass more exams?

I'm 37 and totally fed up of exams but if I must, needs must!

Thanks in advance

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

One does not think of Moncton or Vancouver as being places with diverse populations. Small town BC even less so. A visit would be prudent.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

Vancouver isn't diverse?

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

Hello and welcome to BE! :welcome:

We have an extensive thread from and about GP's - what's needed, what life is like and just about everything you can imagine.. so get a cup of something and wade through some of the posts .. there's also a few other threads posted by GP's interested in moving over... :D

https://britishexpats.com/forum/cana...ioners-781626/

If you were interested in BC - https://www.healthmatchbc.org/Health...als/Physicians
New Brunswick - https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/c...formation.html

Adding in this pdf of the statistics of Diversity of the Black population of Canada (overview) - https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/p...df?st=MalATZBU (opens in new tab, no download).. Ontario has the largest population in Canada :) but the Atlantic Provinces have the longest history..

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/british...bd8b04a7da.jpg

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

I know ..... dbd keeps saying that!!

I can only believe that he keeps to one small area of Vancouver. :nod:

However the Black population here is small compared to the Chinese, Japanese, South-east Asian,and Europeans .... some of those ethinicities going back 5 or more generations. The population with British anf European ancestry is heading very rapidly towards being a minority ......... indeed in some areas, eg Richmond which is just south of the Fraser River from Vancouver, is around 60% ethnic Chinese.

Certainly ethnic populations will be much less in areas of BC outside the Lower Mainland, although small populations of Chinese, Japanese and Filipino, in particular, will be found in almost 100% of places with larger than say 200-300 population .......... most of those places will have at least 1 Chinese restaurant that has been there for 100 years or more.

This all dates back to Chinese labourers brought in to help the railways, many decided to stay in an area if they found local farmers willing to eat and may be have their laundry done. Same for the Japanese who came and worked in fishing and agriculture, and the South-East Asians who worked in lumber mills. The immigrant history in BC is fascinating, as is what happened as the railways were built across the country.

The most culturally integrated Black populations are I think found in Halifax, Montreal and Toronto ......... the Halifax Black population dates all the way back to the mid-1880s as it was one of the terminuses (termini??) for the Slave Railway from the US. It is also a much smaller place than either of the other two, and it seems as if racism may be less there. I'm not saying that it has not happened in the past, or that it does not happen now.

The Black population in Montreal is derived from the French-speaking countries such as Haiti, while that in Toronto derives largely from the Caribbean.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

It's Asian-centric diverse, plus a Canadian-style mix of everything else. But it does lack the French-language cultural base that the OP also values.

I can't comment at all on the OP's medical career considerations, and Moncton is in some ways a logical fit for his cultural ones, but I'd suggest that he also look at Montreal and/or Ottawa before making a final choice.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

If you are wanting a quieter pace of life that is bi-lingual you may want to think of Cornwall, Ontario or Sherbrooke, QC or Aylmer QC.

Agree that Vancouver is very diverse with large south asian and east asian communities. French speaking natives are not as common and in Toronto they are quite rare as well.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

He did say 'small town BC', so somehow I don't think he was thinking of Vancouver………

OP, have you checked to see if you'll be scoring enough to get a visa without a job offer? It's just that if you need a job offer you may not get your first choice of location, so do double check that first.

Best of luck to you.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

I didn't find it so, no. I went to a graduation ceremony at UBC and thought I was in rural England in the 1950s. Students, faculty, guests, all of a muchness. The city seems bicultural rather than multicultural. Riding on the tube there was very much like riding on the one in St. Louis in that everyone looked the same. Of course, the OP may like Vamcouver, despite or because of that.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

While that may be generally true the French language school my children attended in Toronto dew from the populations of the CAR, Haiti, Morocco, the Belgian Congo (whence came my tutor), Vietnam, France, really the entire francophone monde. My understanding is that the French language cultural centre in Vancouver is attended mainly by Europeans (though it's five years since I new the receptionist and times may have changed).

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

Rare? Relative to English speakers, yes, but there are maybe a dozen francophone high schools and many more French immersion ones. Vancouver does have some French language education too but making use of it limits your choice of location. I assume that's not an issue in Moncton.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

Damn, I must have missed that. ;)

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

Yes I've checked on the CIC website and at the moment I would qualify for EE without a job offer according to the questionnaire.... I know this becomes less likely the closer I get to 40.

I will have enough savings to try and live without a job for a couple of months hopefully, but won't be able to put down roots really.

I'm a female lone parent. So would be a cool adventure... Obviously I'd rather have a job lined up and not have to start straight away maybe.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

Moncton has quite a diverse community. Check out MAGMA. They usually have a big festival in the Summer.

Re: UK GP wants to move to Canada - BC or NB?
 

If your French is Parisienne French you may want to check the French spoken in New Brunswick. Many years ago a French Canadian friend from Montreal was visiting Paris.
The locals could not understand him, both his words and accent and he had to converse in English!