Student Debt Rising Amongst New Physicians

Newly-released data indicate that student debt is rising amongst new physicians in Canada. In 2010, 23 percent of medical residents reported having more than $120,000 in education-related debt upon completion of their residency training (as compared with just 17 percent in 2007).

(Note: across Canada, average tuition fees for medical students amount to just over $10,000 a year.)

This appears to have important implications for Canada’s health care system.  Almost one-quarter of residents report that they plan to “select a specialty with a higher earning potential and 17% plan to select a short residency program to begin paying off their debts sooner.” What’s more, four percent of residents report “planning to practice in the U.S. to pay off their medical education debt.”