Oh for gawds sake. Bluddy bluddy hell.

Oh crap. Sorry you have to deal with this, on top of everything else.

Thank you both.

The business owner has sold the location I work at to the manager and another staff member. It runs on very few staff, most the time it's just me and the manager. Yesterday she didn't have any hours for me at her other location. Today she does, so I'm hoping between the 2 locations I can scrape together enough hours. At least until I find something else. I will be able to be a bit choosier about who I apply to.

Phew. I was drowning in tears yesterday.

Given that there is are overseas doctors who want to emigrate to Canada, it seems that the provincial healthcare authorities aren't providing enough practices. It's a bizarre situation.

As if you don’t have enough to deal with ATM.

you are able to get the hours you need.

((((((HUGS))))))

I think it's more 'no one wants to move to the mess that is Central Alberta'. There are plenty of Dr's in Calgary taking patients.

Thank you.

Well that's a positive. In that case higher regional pay would induce some doctors to make the move. Why not talk to your MP, you can't be the only one with this issue in Red Deer, and the government has a duty to provide healthcare services.

I have already started a letter to my MP. Red Deer hospital is a shambles. Central Alberta has had a lack of funding for far too long.

I agree nightmare. We get similar here . Overseas quacks come in but the cost of living & housing is so high that they try for a while then leave.

I do hope you find a practice to take you on.

Any more thoughts on leaving ?

It's the medical associations (just like the lawyer/engineers/accountants[insert professional associations]). They could easily open up more university places, train more doctors and ensure that all have a doctor but then they would have to actually provide a service that people will want to use. Far better to keep it so that everyone is so grateful for the appointment, that they won't care if they are seen 2 hours passed their appointment time because the doctor wants to ensure that they can move from one patient to the next with no delays at all.

thanks.

hubs just wants to go home. I'm happy to go now too, tired of struggling here, hoping one day I'll wake up happy.

we are a bit tied at the moment. At this time hubs is getting disability, which from what we've been told will be paid for as long as he is signed off work, until retirement (7 years), if we move that stops. The average wait for a kidney is 5 years.

we have to do some work on our house. We have several cars to get rid of, 2 are in bits, just taking it day by day. Hubs has said he'll put all the cars apart from the 2 in bits up for sale in the spring, see what goes and how we are coping.

I would like to just run away, sit on a beach with a rum punch and a good book.

Actually, it would much easier if the medical associations would ease up on their "no foreign trained doctor is equal to a Canadian trained one, and we must make sure they jump through all the hoops" attitude.

It's not as easy as one thinks to open up more university places, train more doctors, etc ........... most universities don't have the room in lecture halls or labs to open up more spaces for more doctors, so extra space has to be found or built.

Then more teachers are needed

That will take many months if not years

Then you have to train the doctors ............. 4 or 5 years to the first medical degree, then 2 years residency for Family Doctors, and longer for specialists.

BUT there are hundreds of already fully trained doctors, family practioners and specialists, in Canada and that includes both immigrants and Canadian citizens who went to another country to get their medical degree(s), often because there was no room here.

The associations tightly control how many foreign-trained doctors can, for example, enter the Family Practice Residency. THEN, they have to practise in a remote area before being able to find a practise where they want to be.

Personal experience .............. we go to a Family Practice Residency Clinic at a university. It's interesting to meet all these young doctors, and in fact help to give them practical experience with patients while they are under the supervision of senior family practioners. A number of years ago, one such doctor was a woman in her late 30s/early 40s at a guess. Fully trained in Romania, worked as a doctor for about 10 years in another European country, husband got a position at the university. She had a total of about 15 years experience as a family doctor and spoke perfect English, but had to wait about 3 years to get accepted into the Family Practice Residency that the BC Medical Association insisted she do.

She then had to go to a small town 2 ferry rides and hours away from Vancouver to do her 2 years as required, again by the MA because she was foreign-trained.

That separated the family, of course!

I hope there's even the tiniest comfort for you in knowing that you have internet friends who are sending their very best wishes to you and your husband.

Hungarian friend of ours is a consultant paediatric oncologist (with impeccable English), of many years experience. He did a 12 month assignment in Vancouver - and was treated as very much a junior doctor and, occasionally, with some contempt. At the end of his term he was invited back - but declined, naturally.