B.C. says it has recruited more than 400 U.S. health-care professionals to province | Globalnews.ca
The B.C. government says it has recruited hundreds of U.S. health-care professionals to the province one year after it launched a targeted campaign.
As of January, the province says more than 400 U.S.-trained health professionals have accepted job offers in B.C., including in remote and rural regions.
They include 89 doctors, 260 nurses, 42 nurse practitioners and 23 allied health professionals.
The breakdown in each health region is as follows:
- Fraser Health – 105 health-care professionals
- Interior Health – 83
- Island Health – 97
- Northern Health – 31
- Vancouver Coastal Health and Providence Health – 72
- First Nations Health Authority – 4
- Provincial Health Services Authority – 22
The province said it has received more than 2,750 job applications as of March from U.S. doctors, nurse practitioners, nurses and allied health professionals.
“British Columbia is not only a great place to live, it’s also a great place to work and grow your career,” Premier David Eby said in a statement.
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“Our public health-care system values science, respects reproductive rights and provides great care. We can’t wait to welcome more U.S.-trained doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners and allied health providers to our amazing province.”
The Ministry of Health confirmed that 22 of the doctors are family doctors, 13 are in hospital medicine, 12 are in psychiatry and 10 are in emergency medicine.
As of January, 352,000 people in British Columbia are registered and waiting for attachment to a family doctor on the Health Connect Registry.
The B.C. government says it is working to make it easier for internationally trained health professionals to practise in B.C., including introducing a new, expedited credential recognition process for U.S.-trained and certified nurses and removing the need for further assessment, examination or training.
“I’ve never had such a neighbourly experience before,” Dr. Ianto West, a U.S. psychologist who moved to Vancouver in July 2025, said in a statement.
“It has been a pretty smooth transition. I moved in July and had an invitation for our first Canadian Thanksgiving by October. I’m loving my bike commute to work, too. It seemed to help that I got registered with the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC first. Once I had a job offer, the rest of the process went fast.”
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