The College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC), often called the voice of family medicine in Canada, is the professional association responsible for setting standards for the training, certification, and education of family physicians. It has stood as a champion for the well-being and needs of the family medicine specialty, family physicians, and their patients since its incorporation in 1968. Its duties include accrediting postgraduate family medicine training programs in Canadian medical schools, conducting the certification exam for graduating family medicine residents, and granting its members the certification (CCFP) and fellowship (FCFP) designations.
To ensure that medical practitioners who wish to specialize and practice in family medicine are up to the task, the CFPC organizes an exam that grants Certification in The College of Family Physicians of Canada (CCFP) to those interested. The certification verifies that the physicians who hold it meet the standards required to practice family medicine in Canada.
Physicians who hold the CCFP are highly valued as it signifies that they have completed an accredited family medicine residency program, displayed comprehensive knowledge and clinical skills, and passed the CFPC exam. Passing the exam shows that they can safely and effectively practice family medicine.
Who is eligible to write the exam
To be eligible for the Certification Examination in Family Medicine, candidates must complete a family medicine residency from a CFPC-accredited program with at least 24 months of training or an equivalent program in specific countries with similar accreditation standards, including the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Ireland. Dual certification is possible for those who wish to pursue certification in two specialties, but only if directly supervised by the family medicine program director.
Eligibility requirements include CFPC resident membership, completion of an accredited medical degree and post-graduate training, recommendation from a postgraduate director, and verification of credentials by the Medical Council of Canada (MCC) if obtained outside Canada. Candidates must have completed at least 18 months of their 24-month program, i.e., 75% of extended training to sit the exam, with all requirements completed within three years of passing.
CFPC members must be up-to-date with membership fees as it can take up to 72 hours to process, and credential verification must be submitted to the MCC eight weeks before the exam. They must have completed a minimum of 5 years of full-time active family practice with at least two years of continuous full-time active practice immediately preceding the date of the application.
Additionally, applicants must submit references from two colleagues who are licensed and in good standing from the same jurisdiction as the applicant; one of these references must be a certified member of the CFPC.
Pathways to CCFP
Physicians looking to obtain CFPC certification can approach through one of three ways.
First, a Canadian or International medical graduate who completes a CFPC-accredited (or its equivalent) family medicine residency program and meets the other eligibility requirements can apply directly for the exam.
Next is the Practice-Eligible Route. Family physicians who are already practicing in Canada (did not complete an accredited residency but have the relevant experience) may apply to become eligible for the CCFP through the practice-eligible route. These candidates must have substantial family medicine practice and may need to complete an assessment before taking the exam.
Exam Structure
The examination will take place in two days, with one of its two main components occurring each day. The first is the written short-answer management problems (SAMPs). This section uses 100 computer-based multiple-choice questions to assess your decision-making and clinical management skills across various family medicine scenarios. The exam is four hours in length. After this comes the Simulated Office Oral (SOO), a one-hour and fifteen-minute interview where you are asked five questions that test interpersonal and communication skills and clinical reasoning in simulated patient interviews.
It is heavily recommended that you practice and prepare diligently to be ready for the exam, as the questions can be difficult. That’s where CanadaQBank comes in; it contains 288 of the best simulated CFPC SAMP cases that cover different topics from the tested subject areas. It also has 30 of the best CFPC SOO cases, with brief questions and answers that could be asked by the examiner during each patient scenario.
Candidates can take the exam through one of two methods. You can take it in person at the Prometric Testing Center or through a remotely proctored internet-enabled private location of your choice. To go the second route, you must provide a computer with a camera, microphone, and a stable internet connection. These are to ensure that the Prometric proctor overseeing the examination process can guarantee you pass the exam on your own merit.
Be aware that for an optimal testing experience, it is recommended that your computer has a screen resolution of at least 1920 x 1080 at 100% scaling. This is because Prometric’s ProProctor application offers remote exams, which function optimally according to the stated resolution.
Application/Scheduling
The CFPC organizes the certification exam twice a year, in the spring and fall, in multiple centers around Canada and in both official languages. The application process is quite streamlined. First, you must ensure you have no outstanding membership fees due with the CFPC, as unpaid fees will prevent access to the exam application portal.
Next, you apply online through the CFPC portal and take note of how you want your exam to be taken. The icon for the in-person exams is in a different position than the icon for remote exams. The application period is typically open for four months: January to April and July to October. Late applications are not accepted, so it’s best that you plan ahead to avoid processing delays.
The third step is to obtain a formal recommendation from the postgraduate director of family medicine or an equivalent institutional officer who can confirm that you met the training requirements.
Regarding the application fees, the CFPC recently announced that they will increase the costs of the exams starting the following spring cycle. They mentioned that the price hike will allow them to continue to provide leading-edge, high-quality, reliable exams. The new fee will be CAD 4,369 for residency-eligible candidates and CAD 5,826 for practice-eligible candidates.
For more detailed information about the CFPC exam and to prepare with high-quality practice questions, visit CanadaQBank for CFPC.