The objective of this research is to analyse pathways for internationally educated health professionals (IEHPs) who have formal educational backgrounds in their chosen professions, but do not have the required educational, professional, or language requirements to enter their professions in Canada. To help bridge gaps identified through professional assessment processes and transition IEHPs into professional practice, postsecondary programs have been developed at several Canadian colleges and universities to meet the specific educational needs of professionals educated in other countries. The project involves multiple case study evaluation of six postsecondary bridging programs in three professions with identified workforce shortages (Medical Radiation Technology, Physiotherapy, and Medical Laboratory Technology). This project will be supported by a combination of funding requested from HEQCO ($70,000) and funding provided by the university researchers, both cash ($27,500) and in kind ($13,600).
This research will address the causes, consequences and responses of source countries to the migration of their highly trained health personnel. This will include a focus on doctors, nurses and health care managers and educators. The countries that are going to be examined specifically include the Philippines, India, South Africa, and Jamaica. Data will be gathered about who is migrating, how they are migrating and to where, and at what some of the consequences have been of the migration of highly trained health personnel from these countries using a variety of indicators considered important by those actually within the countries being studied. Finally, some of the responses to minimize the negative consequences will be examined highlighting some useful examples that could be implemented across these and other countries experiencing similar problems. This topic should be of interest to those in Canada because it is one of the countries that these personnel are migrating to and we should understand the consequences this has for countries of origin. Further, this information will help to ensure that Canada meets its international obligations to improve situations in countries from which it benefits from highly skilled migration.
Description: Although health care workers have long been nationally and internationally mobile, there has been little study of the global patterns of migration of healthcare workers and the factors influencing their success in securing work in their field. For this study, Canada will be compared with other high income 'destination' countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. A specific focus will be on the effects of policy and decision-making processes and regulatory environments on the migration of physicians, nurses, and midwives into these four countries. Through interviews with key stakeholders and analysis of the social, political and economic forces shaping migration and health policy, important solutions to health human resource crises will be uncovered and key policy instruments identified that best meet health care needs and better use the health care skills of immigrants.
Description: This project brings together a team with a wide range of practice and research expertise who will focus specifically on evaluating an intervention strategy that involves several dimensions aimed at women, their maternity care providers and the maternity care policies in the community hospital with the goal of reducing C-section rates. The study will involve collecting data on the C-section rate before the intervention strategy was implemented, during the implementation process and after a certain length of time after implementation. From this we will analyze the impact of the intervention strategy. We will also interview women and their maternity care providers to better understand what did and did not work through the implementation process. This will enable us to better inform other hospitals interested in developing similar strategies. The research we propose to undertake here is timeline because the c-section rate in Canada has been increasing without clear clinical reasons. We hope our findings will help to create a more sustainable and appropriate system of maternity care for women experiencing low-risk pregnancies and birth.
The bulk of the costs to our health care system can be attributed to the people who deliver the services - or what is referred to as health human resources. Despite the proportion of the costs associated with who delivers health care and how they do it, there is very little coordination of what we know and don't know in this area. These funds will enable the development of a network of those doing research in this area and those who would benefit from this knowledge. The network will span across Canada and make some of the most promising practices known to key knowledge users in both English and French. The key areas of focus at the outset includes the areas of 1) the mobility of health care workers within a province/territory, between provinces/territories and internationally; 2) the different models of how health professionals can work together; 3) the specific issues facing rural and remote communities and in particular those with an aboriginal background; and 4) how we can best decide how many health care workers we need in particular areas now and in the future.
The objective of this research is to analyse pathways for internationally educated health professionals (IEHPs) who have formal educational backgrounds in their chosen professions, but do not have the required educational, professional, or language requirements to enter their professions in Canada. To help bridge gaps identified through professional assessment processes and transition IEHPs into professional practice, postsecondary programs have been developed at several Canadian colleges and universities to meet the specific educational needs of professionals educated in other countries. The project involves multiple case study evaluation of six postsecondary bridging programs in three professions with identified workforce shortages (Medical Radiation Technology, Physiotherapy, and Medical Laboratory Technology). This project will be supported by a combination of funding requested from HEQCO ($70,000) and funding provided by the university researchers, both cash ($27,500) and in kind (id="mce_marker"3,600).
