Canadian Institute of Health Information. (2010). Physician supply increasing twice as quickly as Canadian population. Ottawa, ON. Retrieved from http://www.cihi.ca/CIHI-ext-portal/internet/en/Document/spending+and+health+workforce/workforce/physicians/RELEASE_15DEC11.

“December 15, 2011—Between 2009 and 2010, growth in the supply of physicians was more than double that of the Canadian population, according to a new report released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). While the physician population increased by 2.3%, a somewhat lower increase than the previous year, the Canadian population as a whole grew only 1.1%. In 2010, there were approximately 69,700 active physicians working in Canada—the greatest number of active physicians there has ever been in this country.

The 2010 edition of CIHI’s annual report Supply, Distribution and Migration of Canadian Physicians shows that over the past five years, the growth in the number of physicians in Canada has consistently outpaced population growth. In 1980, there were 151 active physicians per 100,000 Canadians; in 2006, there were 190; and in 2010, there were 203. Over the past five years, the number of physicians and the physician-to-population ratio increased in all provinces and territories except Yukon and the Northwest Territories.

Although continued investments across Canada to train and retain more doctors means we now have more physicians than ever, it’s important to remember that numbers alone do not tell the whole story,” says Michael Hunt, CIHI’s Director of Pharmaceuticals and Health Workforce Information Services. ‘The demand for physician services depends on a number of factors, including the health care needs of Canadians, the way care is organized, the number of hours doctors are working and the scope of practice of other health professionals.’”