The Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada electives diversification: a discussion of its implications in anesthesiology

Criteria for selection to anesthesia residency programs: a survey of Canadian anesthesia program directors

“…The AFMC changes with SEDP are meant to highlight these more general characteristics of an applicant, 4 but this survey notes that there are still difficulties in its implementation and general process. With most program directors complaining of the unhelpfulness of the Dean's Letter due to its undiscriminating positivity, the elements of the anesthesia CaRMS application process remains the same.…”

“…2 This selection transparency is part of an extended effort since 2013, where the AFMC created the Best Practices and Selection report that identified the attributes of some of the applicants matched to their programs. 3 Unfortunately, not all anesthesia programs have provided this information despite continuous pressures from the AFMC, 4 nor have they regularly updated the Best Practices and Selection report. Questions therefore remain how best an applicant is able to demonstrate their interest and acceptability to any given anesthesia program.…”

La prospection de carrières en médecine de famille entravée par une politique de formation

“…Les commentaires rédigés à ce sujet par des médecins associés à des programmes canadiens de formation postdoctorale très en demande ont souligné ses avantages considérables pour les apprenants, notamment car de la Politique en matière de diversification des stages optionnels pour les étudiants encourage le développement de praticiens plus expérimentés et accroît la visibilité de certaines spécialités [3][4][5] . Toutefois, nous n'avons pas vu jusqu'à présent de publication examinant son incidence sur les candidatures en médecine de famille.…”

Impact of COVID-19 on Canadian anesthesia resident matching: challenges and opportunities for applicants

“…It has been previously noted that a student’s performance during an elective was a main indicator of how they would match in Canada. 4 Without the ability to take visiting electives, there is less opportunity for non-home programs to assess applicants from other schools. It is currently unclear what other objective measures (e.g., research, volunteerism, or core clerkship performance) will be used during the matching process when considering students from schools outside their own.…”

“…Though all anesthesiology programs in Canada offer equally good educational opportunities, the reduced on-site exposure does not allow applicants to consider the many daily-life factors in the prospective new program and city. 4 It also reduces the ability to improve in environments that differ from one another (e.g., medical practice and clinical guidelines). Furthermore, the pool of anesthesia electives available may be limited given COVID-19 infection rates.…”