Memorable N.B. placements for doctors in training can bolster recruitment prospects

After their three-month rotation in Edmundston, Dr. Geneviève Aubé and Dr. Justin Boissonnault decided the northwestern New Brunswick city was the place they wanted to practise. 

Their short-term stay in Edmundston was part of their residency after medical school at the Université de Moncton.  A residency in family medicine is two years long. 

Even though the couple are not from Edmundston, and they don't have family in that area, the sense of community and the francophone environment made them want to stay. 

"We liked that it was a smaller community, that there was a great community spirit, a francophone environment," Aubé told Radio-Canada. "There were lots of outdoor activities. In the background, there are mountains in the middle of the city. It's a quieter town."

Memorable placements could help persuade other students to stay and practise in New Brunswick after graduation, the two doctors say. 

During their placement, the couple got the chance to meet and shadow colleagues. 

Several doctors in the region invited the couple to dinners to discuss medicine, as well as the attractions in the area. 

"It helped us a lot to see what it would be like to practise within this team in Edmundston," said Aubé.

The are different ways medical students and grads can get some experience in clinical settings in New Brunswick before they decide where to practise.

At Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick, the medical school program based in Saint John, students in their third and fourth years rotate through specialties.

They can rotate through different communities as well, according to Dr. Robert Boulay, assistant dean for clinical education at the school.

These clinical placements, which used to be called internships, last for 48 weeks and can be done anywhere in the province. There is no shortage of such placements, Boulay said.

"If our communities put energy into selling themselves to these young physicians … that goes a long way to having students feel welcome in those communities," Boulay said. "And having them feel that, 'Hey, this is a place where I can live, I can develop relationships, and I can perhaps have a family in these communities.'"

At the Université de Moncton's medical school, students who are specializing in family medicine, complete a core of their training at the school in Moncton and Dieppe. While the students do rotations in a variety of places in the province, in their second year, they have the option of doing a three-month rotation in either Edmundston or Bathurst.