As a result of their deliberations committees may make recommendations which they include in their reports for the consideration of the House of Commons or the Government. Recommendations related to this study are listed below.

Recommendation 1

That the Government of Canada collaborate with provincial and territorial governments and consult with organizations involved in recruiting internationally trained health workers, as well as Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada where necessary, to streamline and simplify the process to recruit from countries known to train health workers in excess of their domestic needs.

Recommendation 2

That the Government of Canada collaborate with provincial and territorial governments to provide more residency positions for international medical graduates.

Recommendation 3

That the Government of Canada collaborate with provincial and territorial governments and professional regulatory bodies to improve upon and expand pathways to licensure for international physicians who have already completed their residency and who practiced abroad, such as the National Assessment Collaboration’s (NAC) Practice-Ready Assessment (PRA) program and other similar initiatives.

Recommendation 4

That the Government of Canada support expedited pathways to licensure and practice for internationally trained health care professionals.

Recommendation 5

That the Government of Canada collaborate with provincial and territorial governments and professional regulatory bodies to facilitate the licensing and, where necessary, additional education and training needed for licensing of nurses and other health care professionals working in fields where existing programs are unable to address the workforce shortages.

Recommendation 6

That the Government of Canada collaborate with provincial and territorial governments to increase the number of residency positions, particularly for family medicine.

Recommendation 7

That the Government of Canada work with the provinces, territories, and professional regulatory bodies to establish pan-Canadian licensure for health professionals.

Recommendation 8

That the Government of Canada work with the provinces, territories, and professional regulatory bodies to optimize the scope of practice for primary care professionals, including nurse practitioners and pharmacists.

Recommendation 9

That the Government of Canada in collaboration with provinces, territories and Indigenous Peoples, continue its work in developing a Pan-Canadian Health Data Strategy to improve Canada’s collection, access, sharing and use of health workforce data and lay the foundation for a world-class health data system.

Recommendation 10

That the Government of Canada collaborate with the provinces and territories to create and implement a Pan-Canadian Health Human Resource Strategy to facilitate better identification of gaps in the health care workforce and more efficient action to address those gaps.

Recommendation 11

That the Government of Canada, in consultation with the provinces and territories, and advised by diverse experts from the health community, develop a national strategy on the promotion and implementation of effective health care teams across Canadian society to ensure patient issues are treated by the appropriate member of the health care team to get the best care possible.

Recommendation 12

That the Government of Canada work with the provinces and territories to explore and share best practices in alternate payment mechanisms, specifically towards alleviating physician burnout.

Recommendation 13

That the Government of Canada work with the provinces and territories to expand access to long-term care beds, home care services, and palliative care.

Recommendation 14

That the Government of Canada work with the provinces and territories to improve Canada’s preventative health strategies and increase federal investment in preventative health measures.

Recommendation 15

That the Government of Canada work in collaboration with the provinces and territories as well as Indigenous Peoples, and stakeholders to expand digital infrastructure, and other system improvements, to increase access to high quality, safe virtual care, where appropriate.

Recommendation 16

That the Government of Canada work with the provinces and territories, and/or utilize powers within its purview, to create incentives for health care workers to encourage the retention, and return, of health care workers to help address the workforce crisis.

Recommendation 17

That the Government of Canada work with the provinces and territories to provide incentives to attract more physicians into family care and retain them.

Recommendation 18

That the Government of Canada collaborate with the provinces and territories to develop strategies to recruit, train, and adequately support, health care workers for rural, remote, and northern communities.

Recommendation 19

That the Government of Canada, in partnership with provinces, territories, Indigenous Peoples and stakeholders share best practices in an effort to reduce administrative burdens on health care professionals, where appropriate, to ensure that time is not unnecessarily taken away from patients, and to reduce the significant contributor of administrative burdens to burnout.

Recommendation 20

That the Government of Canada work with the provinces and territories to implement a Pan-Canadian Mental Health Strategy for health care workers.