Sheila Bautz
Special to the Herald
Physician training opportunities are expanding across Saskatchewan due to the partnership between the Government of Saskatchewan and the University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) College of Medicine. As a result, the Department of Academic Family Medicine is adding four new residency training seats with two in Nipawin and two in Melfort for the 2026 Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS).
“Our government is very happy to support the addition of new training opportunities for medical residents here in the province,” Health Minister Jeremy Cockrill said. “Expanding residency seats in Nipawin and other locations [Melfort] in the province aligns with our commitment to improve access to health care in Saskatchewan and we encourage new residents to consider building their practice here in the future.”
The new medical residency training seat expansion builds on the inclusion of residency seats added three years ago in Moosomin, Weyburn and Humboldt. Over the past five years, the training opportunities in family medicine rose to 20 seats. Through the 2026 CaRMS match, the College of Medicine is offering 68 training seats also.
“This announcement reflects a strong commitment from our provincial government to strengthening the health care system here in Nipawin,” said Mayor Marlon Zacharias. “As the Regional Hub of the Northeast, expanding training opportunities for future physicians will highlight the Exceptional by Nature philosophy that defines our community and we believe that once new doctors experience what Nipawin has to offer, they will choose to stay and build their careers here. We sincerely thank the provincial government for this investment in Nipawin’s health care future and look forward to its success.”
The CaRMS organization publicly state that “Every year we match thousands of medical students and residents to the training positions needed to put them on the path to practicing medicine in Canada. We connect applicants with Canadian medical faculty training positions in a fair, competitive process.” An independent organization, CaRMS states they provide transparent applications and a matching process to place residents with, and services for, the Canadian medical educations community.
The importance of rural hospitals is known by the residents in rural and remote locations across the province. The natural settings and unique demographic of Saskatchewan require progressive solutions, particularly at a time when the province is in an accelerated growth in all sectors with an increasing population.
Medical experts from the United States of America (USA) also confirmed through a publicly released 2022 study on rural health care success that there are key elements and strategies practices. The study, entitled Beyond patient care: a qualitative study of rural hospitals’ role in improving community health, involved four American medical experts in the fields of Surgical Oncology, Health Policy and Management.
“In rural communities, hospitals are frequently the primary organization with the resources and capabilities to address health issues. This characteristic highlights their potential to be a partner and leader for community health initiatives,” state Dr. Mochamad Muska Nataliansyah from the Medical College of Wisconsin, Dr Xi Zhu with the Fileding School of Public Health USCLA in California, and Dr. Thomas Vaughn and Dr. Keith Mueller with the University of Iowa.
According to Nataliansyah, Zhu, Vaughn and Mueller, the motivation for their study was to gather a full understanding about the success for rural community hospitals. The team of medical experts conducting the research interviews selected four USA rural hospital leaders who demonstrated a commitment to their communities.
Upon completion of gathering data, researchers Nataliansyah, Zhu, Vaughn and Mueller identified three types of motivation that improve community health. They are internal values, economic conditions and social responsibilities. The team of experts also discovered and publicly revealed in their 2022 study that the key strategies for succes in rural hospitals is building capacity, building relationships and building programs.
“It is encouraging to see increased training opportunities for Melfort and hope the medical residents will be inspired to stay and build their future practice here,” said Mayor Glenn George. “I am grateful to the provincial government for providing these new residencies to our community and I look forward to all the good things that are coming to the Northeast in health care.”
Earlier this year, CaRMS matched 54 local graduate residents from USask’s College of Medicine to remain in Saskatchewan. There were 147 medical residents in total who were a match for the prairie province.
“Where learners train strongly impacts where they practice,” said Dr. Sarah Forgie (MD), Dean at the University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine. “Continuing to grow training opportunities across the province is a priority for our college, and these new resident doctor positions will strengthen health care supports for people in the area.”
Representatives from both regions are looking forward to increased health care providers and services.
“This announcement brings great news for the Town of Nipawin and the surrounding area,” said Terri Bromm, MLA for Carrot River Valley. “With this addition of two new residency seats, we are building opportunities to expand patient care in rural communities.”
“We recognize and appreciate all the hard work our doctors have done in our community and across the province,” said Todd Goudy, MLA for Melfort. “With this announcement, we are excited to see more training and recruitment opportunities for physicians in Saskatchewan.”
The Government of Saskatchewan states that the new medical residency seats are expected to launch training by July 1, 2026.
