The Northern/Remote Residency Stream, which accepted its first residents in 2008, is an innovative program designed to increase the number of primary care physicians in Manitoba’s northern and remote communities. Residents in this stream complete two years of Family Medicine training, consisting of approximately 16 months of training in Winnipeg and 8 months of training in northern or remote communities in Manitoba, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. The program meets the requirements for certification in family medicine with the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC). Upon graduation these physicians must fulfill a two year Return-of-Service agreement with Manitoba Health in a remote or northern Manitoba community, after which they will have the opportunity to apply for admission to the specialty training program of their choice in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Manitoba.
In their first year, residents in this stream complete their Family Medicine Block Time at the Northern Connection Medical Centre, a family medicine teaching unit affiliated with the Health Sciences Centre and located in Winnipeg’s Centennial neighborhood. The primary target patient population is individuals from First Nations communities who need primary care while they’re temporarily in Winnipeg. Most physicians working at the clinic also travel up north regularly to provide care in northern or remote communities.
In their second year, residents spend the majority of their time in northern locations such as fly-in First Nations communities; small towns and cities such as Churchill, The Pas and Flin Flon; and extreme northern locations in Nunavut and Northwest Territories.
Northern/Remote Brochure (pdf)
Northern/Remote Resident Manual (pdf)
Potential Practice Models for Return of Service (pdf)
Return-of-Service Potential Practice Locations (pdf)
