Nova Scotia to renew efforts to recruit more British doctors

A recruitment team from Nova Scotia is heading back to the UK next week to try to attract more doctors to live and work in the province.

Staff from the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration, Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) and College of Physicians and Surgeons, will spend five days meeting one-on-one with doctors in London, Bristol, Birmingham and Manchester prior to the British Medical Journal Careers Fair in London on 4th and 5th October.

“Doctors in the UK are starting to hear about the opportunities in Nova Scotia from friends and colleagues who have already moved here,” said the province’s Immigration Minister, Lena Metlege Diab. “Since the physician immigration pathway started, we have approved 44 doctors to come live and work in Nova Scotia.”

Nova Scotia representatives will discuss employment and immigration options with doctors and promote the province’s two immigration pathways, the provincial Physician Immigration Stream and a new Labour Market Priorities Stream for Physicians.

The new stream is a faster path for permanent residency through the federal Express Entry System. It was created in response to feedback from doctors who have settled in Nova Scotia this past year.

“Our collaboration with the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration and the College of Physicians and Surgeons has increased our success in this market,” said Katrina Philopoulos, director of recruitment, Nova Scotia Health Authority. “We show up with a contingent of people to meet with interested candidates and answer their questions. This helps move them further through the process and it has been shown to be effective.”

“There is great interest in the UK right now for doctors looking to come to work in our health system,” added Dr Simon Bonnington, a family doctor in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Royal. “Nova Scotia has great lifestyle advantages, as well as a workplace environment that is significantly more rewarding both professionally and financially. I look forward to the opportunity to share my experience.”

This will be the third year Nova Scotia has participated in the British Medical Journal Jobs Fair.

Article published 27th September 2019