A Career in Research
Quebec health research fund (Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé, or FRQS) Research Scientist positions
Research Scientist positions are intended for specialist physicians signing onto the Memorandum of agreement concerning the establishment of special pay terms and conditions for research scientists (Protocole d’accord concernant la mise en place de modalités de rémunération particulière pour les chercheurs-boursiers). Special rules apply to medical residents wishing to pursue careers as researchers.
There are three possible streams or pathways to access this training. For further details, talk with your Associate Dean’s office or consult the FRQS site (in French only).
Any doctor wishing to perform a fellowship in order to obtain such a position must hold ahead of time a compliance notice in the establishment where he wishes to practise. Although he will ultimately not be counted in the PEM of the university establishment (CIUSSS or University Health Centre), the MSSS wishes to ensure that doctors apply for positions in hospital settings.
Note also that if a physician eventually decides to withdraw from the Memorandum of agreement, he may take an available position in his specialty. If the PEM is full, he will be considered surplus to the PEM until the next departure of a physician in his department.
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) Clinician Investigator training
There is also training delivered in medical faculties that may be carried out following initial certification, namely, Clinician Investigator training recognized by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. For further details, consult the RCPSC site.
Applications for admission to the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) Clinician Investigator Program do not require the DSP’s signature. But they are subject to a specific process, the rules for which vary slightly from one faculty to another. This program offers integrated, structured, rigorous research training during residency, with a view to a career as a clinician investigator.
Research fields do not concern only the traditional aspects of clinical and laboratory-based biomedical research, but also cover such disciplines as the economy, management, social science, and behavioural and information science, as they apply to health and disease. Medical residents successfully completing this program receive a Diploma of Specialized Studies (Diplôme d’études spécialisées) from the university and a Certificate from the RCPSC. Candidates have to register in a Master’s (MSc) or Doctorate (PhD) program to undertake this training unless they already hold such degrees. Medical residents are normally paid by the Quebec Health Insurance Board (RAMQ) during the specialty program, and during the fellowship year.