Your experience matters. Practice Ready Ontario (PRO) helps eligible internationally trained family physicians transition into practice in Ontario without having to complete a full residency.
Apply now
Have you read through the requirements to see if you are ready to apply? If yes, apply now.
About Practice Ready Ontario (PRO)
Practice Ready Ontario (PRO) helps experienced internationally trained family physicians transition into practice in Ontario without repeating a full residency program. The program recognizes that many physicians already have significant postgraduate training, clinical expertise, and independent practice experience, and provides an alternative pathway to demonstrate their readiness for practice in Ontario.
Delivered through a collaboration between Touchstone Institute, the Government of Ontario, Ontario Health, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO), and the Medical Council of Canada (MCC), PRO uses a competitive selection process and a 12-week Clinical Field Assessment to evaluate whether physicians have the knowledge, skills, and professional competencies required to practice safely and effectively in Ontario.
Physicians who successfully complete the assessment can begin practicing as supervised family physicians in Ontario through a three-year Return of Service commitment in a designated community.
Review the process details and eligibility requirements below to learn whether PRO may be the right pathway for you.
Are you already an Ontario family doctor?
Ontario family doctors make this program possible. You can join PRO as an assessor or host a Clinical Field Assessment site. Assessors earn $25,200 per candidate and Mainpro+ credits.
Process overview
PRO has four phases.
PHASE 1
Eligibility Review
We review your application to confirm that you meet the program requirements
PHASE 2
Verification
We verify your documents and you complete a multiple mini-interview. If you are successful, you apply to the CPSO for a provisional certificate of registration
PHASE 3
Clinical Field Assessment
You complete an orientation, then a 12-week Clinical Field Assessment in an Ontario community, where you demonstrate your clinical competencies and receive feedback from an experienced Ontario family doctor
PHASE 4
Return of Service
You work for three years as a supervised family doctor in an Ontario community that needs you. Complete it, and you can practice independently anywhere in Ontario
Please note that PRO is competitive. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee a spot.
Eligibility
Use this checklist to see if you meet the baseline eligibility requirements.
❑ Status: I am a Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident.
❑ Education: I have a medical degree from a school listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools.
❑ Language: I have proof of English proficiency.
❑ Licensing: I am a Licentiate of the Medical Council of Canada (LMCC), or I have completed the requirements and I am waiting for my certificate.
❑ Exams: I have passed the MCCQE Part 2 (before 2021) OR the NAC Examination (March 2013 or later). These are Medical Council of Canada exams.
❑ TDM: I have passed the Therapeutics Decision-Making (TDM) Exam, OR I am eligible to take it.
❑ Experience: I have 48 months of combined postgraduate training and independent practice as a family doctor
❑ Recency: I have completed 960 hours of clinical practice in family medicine in the last 3 years. At least 720 of these hours were in person.
❑ Rotations: I have completed the seven core postgraduate rotations
❑ Family Medicine OR General Practice
❑ Emergency Medicine
❑ General Surgery
❑ Internal Medicine
❑ Obstetrics & Gynecology
❑ Pediatrics
❑ Psychiatry
❑ ACLS Qualification: list your Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) qualifications.
This checklist is provided for general guidance only. Applicants must review the full eligibility requirements, including detailed criteria and documentation requirements, before applying.
Fees, costs and Compensation
There is no fee to apply to the program. However, applicants are responsible for the costs of any required exams, licence fees, and other regulatory requirements that may be needed during the application process and as they progress through the program. The Fees page provides information about fees associated with eligibility and regulatory requirements.
Candidates receive a stipend during the Clinical Field Assessment. During their Return of Service, they can begin compensated practice under the supervision of an Ontario-licensed family physician.
A detailed breakdown of costs is available.
Frequently asked questions
Resources
For current candidates
- Sign in to the CFA Platform to confirm daily assessments and submit your logs and reflections.
- Assessment forms: a summary of forms and submission deadlines, and sample forms you can review.
- Sign in to the Learning Management System for your orientation e-learning modules.
- Policies and Procedures: rules and guidance for candidates and assessors.
- Hospital credentials support letter: your assessor uses this letter to request hospital access for you.
Partners
Touchstone Institute delivers PRO in partnership with the Government of Ontario, Ontario Health, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO), and the Medical Council of Canada (MCC). Through PRO, we help eligible internationally trained family physicians demonstrate their readiness for practice in Ontario through an accelerated pathway, bringing more doctors to the communities that need them.
PRO is funded by the Government of Ontario.
Contact Practice Ready Ontario
Do you have a question this page does not answer? Fill out the contact form and the PRO team will reply. For questions about the Return of Service, contact Ontario Health at practiceontario@ontariohealth.ca
