Doctor Salary in Canada .. Everything You Need to Know 2023
You will find anything you need to know about doctor salary in Canada. Knowing the average salary for a medical doctor in Canada is useful if you are just starting out in the medical field, starting your residency, or considering relocating from another country.
Even if you are interested in medicine because it is your passion, the money you can expect to make in Canada is an important consideration.
Important Points to Know About Doctor Salary in Canada
What factors influence the average Canadian doctor’s salary are:
- Province
- Specialization
- Years of experince
Canada’s average physician pay might be anything from $83,379 to $414,389 annually according to Job bank Canada. What accounts for such a wide discrepancy? The following six considerations will be illuminating:
1. Number of patients
The average physician salary in Canada is derived from a variety of sources. The most important is a fee-for-service model, which allows doctors to bill the government for each patient they see. A Canadian doctor’s salary is made up of a rate per service that is claimed and submitted to the government for reimbursement. The average doctor salary will be determined by how many patients they can see in a day, the services they provide, and the province in which they practice. In 2019, family medicine doctors charged an average of $51 per service, while medical and surgical specialists charged $87 and $91 per service, respectively.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information reports that 72% of physicians work on a fee-for-service basis. Alternative payment plans (which usually include some fee-for-service tasks) and salaries are the other payment models.
A doctor’s hourly salary in Canada will vary depending on the province where they work, the number of patients they see per hour, and the amount they can bill for each patient under the fee-for-services model. Family doctors see more patients per day, but specialists can bill at a higher rate per patient, so a doctor’s yearly salary is determined by how many patients they can see, how many hours they work, and how much they can charge for each service.
Also read: Doctor Salary in Sweden
2. Specialization
The average annual salary for a doctor in Canada is determined by your specialization, just as it is determined by the rate you charge per visit. The CIHI estimates that the average gross payment per physician in 2020 will be $354,000. Family medicine doctors made $287,000 on average, medical specialists made $370,000, and surgical specialists made $487,000. Keep in mind that these figures are reported as the gross amount doctors bill the provincial government — they do not include the amount doctors pay in practice overhead, taxes, or other expenses, which can range between 20 and 30%.
Higher-paying jobs in highly specialized medical fields may also require longer hours. Make sure to weigh your earning potential against the other factors that will influence your specialization choice. Keep in mind that other factors influence a doctor’s yearly salary within specialization – higher paying specializations often necessitate more years of education, more hours, or a more stressful working environment. Some specializations may earn more in terms of doctor career salary, while others may earn less per hour.
3. Location
The province and location in which a doctor chooses to practice are important factors in salary variation. While the fee for service model is used in all provinces and territories, the amount you can charge varies by province. Even location premiums are affected by your level of specialization; more highly specialized physicians earn more and have less variation across provinces. As an example:
- Family physicians earn an average salary of $308,000 per year in BC and $303,000 in Ontario
- Cardiologists in BC earn $599,000 per year versus $508,000 in Ontario
- Psychiatrists earn $316,000 in BC versus $281,000 in Ontario
Furthermore, the government will incentivize doctors to work in remote areas and underserved communities. These programs offer student loan forgiveness and bursaries to doctors who want to work in underserved or rural areas across Canada. Doctors who have recently graduated from medical school should consider working in these programs to increase their annual salary and get out of debt.
Also read: Doctor Salary in the UK
4. Whether you receive alternative payment methods
Depending on your specialization, you may be able to earn more for your services outside the fee for service model. These alternative methods include salaries, sessional and hourly rates, capitation models and contract work. According to Glassdoor, the average physician salary was $142,000, although this figure doesn’t account for fee for service billings or the number of hours worked.
Salary contracts enable physicians to earn more money in ways other than seeing patients. Most of these alternative payment models are for family doctors. 34% of family doctors made more than half of their total clinical payments through alternative payment methods, while only 16% of medical specialists and 8% of surgical specialists did. Where you live also matters — according to the same CIHI data, alternative doctor salary in Canada varies by province, with more than half of doctors in Ontario receiving some form of alternative payment, compared to only 17% of doctors in Alberta.
Alternative payment methods could look different for every doctor, but are often used to give doctors who live in areas with fewer patients a more consistent income. They also provide a more reasonable Canadian doctor salary for time consuming patient protocols or procedures.
5. Whether you have your own practice
Doctors’ salaries in Canada can also be influenced by their work environment. Working in a hospital or for a larger medical institution can result in a lower average annual salary for a doctor, because doctors who own their own medical practice are free to pay themselves a salary or other form of compensation as income from the practice. Doctors who run their own practices report being happier and having a better work-life balance than those who work in hospitals.
If you’re thinking about starting your own private practice, keep in mind that you’ll be financially responsible for the overhead and monthly fixed costs in addition to your student loan payments – so if this is an option for you, make sure you’re financially stable first. You will most likely be taking out loans to finance your practice for the first few years, and you don’t want to overextend yourself.
6. Whether you do research or teach
Your research interests can also influence the amount of money you can earn. Some doctors can earn a higher salary by teaching, researching, and planning and organizing conferences while working with a university or a research institute. Physicians can supplement their doctor salary by working as a researcher or teacher, which can earn you an additional salary per year. Full-time university research or teaching positions held on a sessional or contract basis can provide this.
Grants from the Medical Council of Canada, fellowships, and research stipends are some of the other ways physicians can earn money through their research. How much you can earn through academic means is largely determined by your preference for a clinical career over an academic one. The ivory tower isn’t for everyone, but if you enjoyed research in school or are deeply invested in your field of study, it’s not a bad idea to consider adding this to your doctor salary.
Medical doctors in Canada are fortunate to have one of the most financially flexible professions. Aside from the fee-for-service model, which accounts for the majority of doctors’ earnings, there are numerous creative ways to earn more per year. The salary of a medical doctor in Canada varies depending on where you live, how many patients you see, and what you studied in school – so medical students considering a specialization should conduct extensive research before deciding on a major.
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