Family doctor says 'it hurts' that red tape is preventing him from seeing 1,500 patients in Ontario

Dr. Ivan Escudero is ready to care for hundreds of Hamilton-area residents who'd otherwise be without a family physician. 

He has the qualifications — completing his residency and getting his licence to practise in the U.S., and then passing Canada's certification exams. 

He said he also has multiple job offers from clinics across the southern Ontario region where he'd likely care for roughly 1,500 patients within a year of practice, he said. 

What's standing in Escudero's way is Canada's medical licence labyrinth — a multi-agency, multi-step bureaucracy that's taken seven months and counting to process his application so he can work in his home country. 

"It hurts," said Escudero. "I see people that don't even have a voice for their concerns, and that's the whole purpose of a family physician. Being a resource to say, 'Hey, I can help you with your medical needs.'"  

In Ontario, 2.3 million people don't have a family doctor, including over 55,000 in Hamilton. Both numbers are expected to double by 2026, according to the Ontario College of Family Physicians.

Family doctors in Hamilton are retiring, many graduates aren't entering family medicine and some family doctors are thinking about leaving the field, McMaster University's chair of family medicine Dr. Cathy Risdon previously told CBC Hamilton. 

She described the situation as "terrifying." 

Over a year ago, the Ontario College of Family Physicians released recommendations on how to ease the shortage. They include fast-tracking foreign-trained doctors to practise in the province.

As far as Escudero is concerned, fast-tracking isn't happening.

He said his application process has been riddled with "ridiculous" red tape and he's "stuck in limbo" despite his best efforts. His experience is also supposed to be simplified, as he trained in the U.S. — one of four countries Canada waives some requirements for.

After completing his undergraduate degree at Toronto's York University, Escudero studied at the Saint James School of Medicine in the Caribbean and applied to residencies in Canada. He said he didn't get a single interview, but wasn't ready to give up his dream of becoming a family doctor.

He turned his attention to residencies in the U.S. and was accepted to his top choice, a clinic in Detroit. 

Escudero finished the three-year medical program last year and became licensed to practise in the U.S., but he wanted to be in Canada.