Saudi Arabian medical residents can stay in Canada for now: hospital organization

About 1,000 Saudi Arabian medical residents and fellows were initially told they had until Aug. 31 to leave the country, raising concerns about the impact their abrupt departure would have on health-care services. (Photo by Andrew Fackler/Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0)

Hundreds of Saudi Arabian resident physicians who had been told to leave Canada amid a diplomatic dispute will be able to stay in the country to continue their training for now, medical organizations said Tuesday, expressing relief at the development.

Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic ties, suspended future trade and recalled its students from Canadian schools earlier this month after a federal government tweet that criticized the Middle Eastern kingdom for the arrest of female social activists.

About 1,000 Saudi Arabian medical residents and fellows were initially told they had until Aug. 31 to leave the country, raising concerns about the impact their abrupt departure would have on health-care services.

An organization representing Canadian hospitals said Tuesday that the Saudi medical trainees had been told by their government on Monday afternoon that they could continue their assignments in the country until an alternative posting can be arranged.

“It eased the tension that existed, allowing them to continue to do their training in Canada,” said Paul-Emile Cloutier, president and CEO of HealthCareCan, noting that his organization was informed of the development by hospitals and the Saudi Arabian Cultural Bureau, which oversees the medical student program.

“It also helps our institutions to really allow them to be more organized in their planning.

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Cloutier, who had said the loss of Saudi resident physicians would likely cause delays in care, said hospitals had been scrambling to determine how to fill gaps that would be left by departing trainees.

He noted, however, that health-care facilities were still waiting for specific details on just how long the Saudi residents physicians can stay on.

“We don’t know the full implications of yesterday’s decision,” he said, adding that his organization was trying to find out whether trainees who already left the country can return.

The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada said the development meant medical residents can write their fall exams but it wasn’t known how new trainees set to begin their programs would be affected.

“It’s unclear whether Saudi Arabian residents and fellows who are scheduled to start programs in Canada this year will be able to do so,” Dr. Andrew Padmos, the college’s chief executive, said in a statement.

One Ontario hospital said it welcomed the news that Saudi medical residents and fellows can remain but noted that many of its Saudi trainees had already left.

“We are still working with our partners to address the significant gaps as a result of those that have already left and the ongoing uncertainty about how this will impact our health care system in the longer-term,” said Dr. Richard McLean, chief medical executive of Hamilton Health Sciences, a medical group of seven hospitals and a cancer centre.

According to the Saudi Arabian Cultural Bureau, most foreign medical trainees in Canada are from the kingdom. The bureau did not respond to a request for comment.

The federal government has said it is engaged in talks with Saudi authorities but will not back away from its stance on human rights in the kingdom.