Physician from India struggles to
pursue her medical career in Canada
by Jim Wilkes
Toronto Star Staff Reporter
Callista Phillips wanted to be a doctor since she was a little girl.
Both her parents were physicians, so it seemed natural that she'd be one, too.
JIM WILKES/TORONTO STAR
QUIET DETERMINATION: Callista
Phillips was bitterly disappointed that her medical background meant
so little when she came to Canada. But she has worked steadily to
attain the qualifications she needs to resume her doctor's career.
But five years as a family doctor and a
surgeon in India didn't mean a thing when she immigrated to Canada in 1998.
Her specialty certificates in laboratory medicine and pathology didn't seem to
be worth the paper they were printed on, either.
But Phillips hasn't given in to the roadblocks she faces in her quest to
resume her medical career.
"I'm a doctor," the 36-year-old mother said adamantly.
"That's what I was always meant to be."
Even though doctors are in short supply across Canada, Phillips found it's
incredibly tough for foreign physicians to convince certification boards that
they're qualified to practise medicine.
"The first statement I read in a booklet from the Medical Council of Canada
was that it is virtually impossible to get any training positions in Canada
for people who graduated outside this country," she said.
"That made me feel very bad."
Phillips considered seeking a research position but just couldn't abandon her
calling.
Neither would she abandon her new country, to which she'd come with husband
Trevor and son David.
"I thought it would be better for him to grow up here," she said.
"When I was in India, I always thought the grass was greener on the other side
of the ocean.
"Now that I'm here, it really is greener."
A turning point, she said, was a visit to Skills For Change, where she met
other foreign-trained doctors in the same position.
The organization arranged a co-op placement with a dermatologist, where she
did office work and was allowed to observe patients.
A similar placement followed with a doctor at Toronto General Hospital,
although she could simply watch, not touch.
"But that helped me a lot," she said. "It helped me understand the Canadian
system."
Last year, she was one of 36 candidates chosen from more than 300 applicants
for the Ontario International Medical Graduates Program and was assigned to
the medical school at Queen's University in Kingston.
She recently completed a radiology internship at Toronto's Mount Sinai
Hospital and is in the midst of the residency selection process that will
eventually lead her back to full certification.
"I still have a long way to go," Phillips said.
"It's just a matter of hard work, determination and being in the right place
at the right time. If you continue pursuing your dreams, you can always make
it in Canada."
She says her motto is: "Troubles, like the hills ahead, straighten out when
you advance on them."
Phillips is hopeful her troubles are nearing an end.
"Being a doctor here is an opportunity to give something back to the community
that gave to me," she said. "People were so good to me when I came to Toronto.
"So it means I can help other immigrants, other people in similar positions.
"A positive attitude can get you whatever you want."
