Toronto, June 7 (IANS) The government of Ontario province, the economic engine of Canada, will soon make a law that will allow foreign-trained doctors - so long left to drive cabs - to practise their trade.
Since foreign credentials are not recognized in Canada, most foreign-trained doctors and professionals are left to drive cabs and do odd jobs. In fact, Ontario province and its capital Toronto have more foreign-trained doctors, including from India, driving taxis than any other place in the world.

The economic loss to Canada for not using the skills of such highly qualified immigrants is estimated at more than $6 billion annually.

But Ontario Health Minister George Smitherman announced Friday that legislation will be introduced soon to accommodate foreign-trained doctors as the province faces shortage of over 2,500 doctors and nurses.

Almost a million people in this province of 12.8-million population already don’t have a family doctor.

Under the proposed law, the doctors coming from countries with comparable health delivery systems will be given a transitional licence to work under supervision and then complete their training.

The minister said, “This (act) is about transitioning those specialists into opportunities without having to go through residency, and they would be supervised by existing physicians in those environments.”