Canada - World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe
Canada - World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe
Canada - World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe
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<strong>Health</strong> systems in transition <strong>Canada</strong> 97<br />
of practice – which includes prescribing certain classes of prescription drug<br />
and ordering some diagnostic tests – overlaps with that of family physicians.<br />
More importantly, given the evidence of the declining comprehensiveness<br />
of the primary care offered by physicians since the late 1980s, the range of<br />
health services offered by nurse practitioners has been of interest to primary<br />
health care re<strong>for</strong>m advocates and provincial ministries of health (Chan, 2002b;<br />
College of Nurses of Ontario, 2004; CIHI, 2011c). In addition to their RN<br />
education and training, nurse practitioners must get additional training from<br />
accredited institutions that are offered in all ten provinces. The length of these<br />
programmes, including the clinical practicum, vary from one year to slightly<br />
in excess of two years (CIHI, 2011a).<br />
To practise in <strong>Canada</strong>, a pharmacist must hold a bachelor’s degree in<br />
pharmacy from an accredited programme, pass the qualifying examination<br />
administered by the Pharmacy Examining Board of <strong>Canada</strong>, and register with<br />
the appropriate P/T regulatory body. Ten universities offer programmes in<br />
<strong>Canada</strong>. All are four-year programmes, including clinical practicum, with the<br />
exception of a five-year programme at Memorial University of Newfoundland.<br />
There have been between 705 and 1075 pharmacy graduates a year from these<br />
Canadian universities between 2000 and 2009 (CIHI, 2011a).<br />
Chiropractors in <strong>Canada</strong> must have a doctorate of chiropractic (DC) from<br />
an accredited programme, pass the Canadian Chiropractors Examining Board<br />
National Competency Examination and register with a provincial or territorial<br />
regulatory body as required. There are two accredited chiropractic programmes<br />
in <strong>Canada</strong>: a four-year programme at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic<br />
College in Ontario, and a five-year programme at the Université du Québec à<br />
Trois-Rivières in Quebec, which together have produced between 188 and 218<br />
graduates a year between 2000 and 2009 (CIHI, 2011a).<br />
Dentists practising in <strong>Canada</strong> must have a doctor of dental medicine (DDM)<br />
or a doctor of dental surgery (DDS) degree from an accredited programme,<br />
pass the National Dental Examining Board of <strong>Canada</strong> Written Examination<br />
and Objective Structured Clinical Examination as well as register with the<br />
pertinent P/T regulatory body. There are ten accredited programmes, all four<br />
years in length. There is considerable competition <strong>for</strong> entry into <strong>Canada</strong>’s ten<br />
dental schools, five of which are located in Quebec and Ontario. Canadians<br />
are among the world’s highest spenders on dental care, in part due to the<br />
prevalence of private dental insurance – largely through employment-based<br />
benefit plans. As with physicians, a number of specializations requiring two to<br />
three years of higher education and residency have emerged over time including