Eligibility Criteria for Specialty Recognition

Preamble

Section 10 of the Medical Practitioners Regulations¹ requires the Registrar must maintain a list of members whose names appear on a register and who qualify to be recognized as a medical specialist with criteria approved by Council.

Purpose

This policy sets out the criteria a physician must meet to be recognized as a specialist.

Scope

This policy applies to all individuals who have met the criteria for registration and have been issued a licence to practise medicine in Nova Scotia.

Policy

Pursuant to this policy, the College will recognize specialty titles only in areas for which specialties and subspecialties are granted by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC)², the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC)³ or the College des medicins du Quebec (CMQ)⁴.

A physician must not identify themselves as a specialist unless they have been granted specialty recognition by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia (the College).

1. Criteria for Special Recognition

All physicians granted a licence to practise medicine as the most responsible physician will be recognized as a specialist on the College’s Medical Specialties List.

This usually applies to physicians who hold one of the following licence types:

• Full licence; or
• Restricted licence; or
• Defined licence⁵; or
• Defined licence – Clinical Fellowship⁶; or
• Academic licence⁷; or
• Temporary licence.

2. Exclusions:

All physicians who are not the most responsible physician in practice, such as those holding a Postgraduate Training licence, Clinical Assistant licence⁸ or a Clinical Assessment licence, are not eligible for specialty recognition.

Physicians may complete additional training through the RCPSC and obtain a diploma in an Area of Focused Competence or through the CFPC to obtain a Certificate of Added Competence (CAC).

These additional training diplomas/certificates do not meet the RCPSC or CFPC criteria for a specialty, foundation program or subspecialty. The College will recognize and record this information on a physician’s record but will not recognize these credentials for the purposes of specialist designation.

Resources

1. Medical Practitioners Regulations
2. Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
3. College of Family Physicians of Canada
4. College des medicins du Quebec
5. Defined Licence: Requirements and Conditions for Supervised Practice as the Most Responsible Physician
6. Defined Licence for Clinical Fellowship: Requirements & Conditions for Licensure
7. Academic Licensure
8. Clinical Assistant Licence