Nova Scotia Reports Record Doctor Recruitment With 278 New Physicians
Nova Scotia achieved its highest annual physician recruitment, adding 278 new doctors for a net gain of 199 after departures and retirements. International candidates made up 40 per cent of the hires, while local medical schools also contributed significantly to staffing across the province's health zones.
Nova Scotia recorded its best year for physician recruitment, bringing in 278 new doctors—a 10 per cent increase from the previous year. Of the new cohort, 111 are family physicians and 167 are specialists. After accounting for departures and retirements, Nova Scotia Health reported a net gain of 199 doctors.
Katrina Philopoulos, senior director of physician recruitment for Nova Scotia Health, stated that 40 per cent of the new doctors were recruited internationally this year. Thirty-three new doctors came from the United States, an increase from 12 the previous year, with other recruits arriving from the United Kingdom, Ireland, and South Africa. The Physician Assessment Centre of Excellence, which launched in February 2025, supported eight internationally trained doctors in gaining licences.
Local medical training programs also contributed to the recruitment numbers. The Cape Breton Medical Campus opened to 30 medical students who have entered return-of-service agreements to practise family medicine in rural areas. Additionally, 41 of Dalhousie Medical School’s 79 graduating family medicine residents were retained in Nova Scotia this year.
The placement of new physicians varied by region. Seventy new family doctors are employed in the Halifax Regional Municipality, where the Need a Family Practice Registry dropped to 5,401 people as of October, down from 6,751 in September. The Eastern zone added five family doctors and 35 specialists, with 14,455 people remaining on its registry. The Western zone added 17 doctors, leaving 16,465 people on the registry, while the Northern zone added 19 family physicians, with 13,017 people on the registry.
As of the end of 2025, there were 1,702 family physicians working in Nova Scotia and 65 family medicine vacancies. Rod Wilson, the NDP’s health critic, argued that more transparency is needed regarding recruitment goals. He noted that the 65 vacancies may not reflect the full extent of need due to varying patient loads, citing an average patient load of 1,317 people.