National Registry of Physicians
Improving health care access in Canada with integrated and reliable information about physicians.
A comprehensive source of physician data
The National Registry of Physicians (NRP) brings together data into the most comprehensive physician database in Canada. Built to help transform the health care landscape, the NRP moves us towards stronger health care delivery and collaboration across jurisdictions.
The initial version of the NRP is accessible to medical regulatory authorities (MRAs) across the country. Subsequent expanded releases to various interested parties will be added on a progressive basis.
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Revolutionizing health care access in Canada
Access to centralized physician data
- Offers access to comprehensive and up-to-date physician information from across Canada in one cloud-based and secure location
- Consolidates data from provincial MRAs while ensuring their ownership
- Provides a wide range of physician data, including credentials, specialties, and practice locations
- Enables accurate, reliable, and secure information exchange through collaborative data management
Improved collaboration and information sharing
- Allows for collaboration and sharing among health care professionals and policymakers across jurisdictions
- Facilitates efficient decision-making, reducing delays and potential harm to patients
- Enhances health care delivery with easy access to accurate physician information
- Enables rapid response during health crises by identifying specialized physicians quickly
Enabling better health outcomes
- Promotes improved health outcomes through enhanced collaboration and information exchange nationwide
- Initial step towards portability of physician credentials, facilitating practice in different regions
- Supports researchers, policymakers, and health care professionals with valuable data analysis and evidence-based decision-making
Funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Sectoral Workforce Solutions Program
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Stay informed and follow the progress
The NRP has the potential to revolutionize the health care system in Canada, reducing delays and promoting better health outcomes. Imagine a centralized system that enables quick identification of specialized physicians during a health crisis or emergency.
Sign up for the Medical Council of Canada’s biannual ECHO newsletter to stay informed on the progress of the NRP and other MCC initiatives.
Frequently asked questions
Initially, the Medical Council of Canada (MCC) and Medical Regulatory Authorities (MRAs) will be able to access the information.
Expanded use anticipated for the next phase of the NRP includes providing public access; however, the public will only have access to information that is currently available to them in provincial college registers according to privacy laws.
Most provinces and territories are participating in the NRP. Discussions to address additional privacy and data hosting questions from Quebec and Ontario continue.
MRAs will be joining the NRP on a rolling basis depending on how their own systems are available to send the data to the NRP in adherence with the Data Sharing Agreements. Full onboarding is anticipated to take 12-18 months from April 1, 2024.
A national registry will allow single source access to accurate physician data without having to collate from different MRAs. It will help speed up processes, decision making and accurate data access.
Provincial registries focus on their own data and will feed the national registry, ensuring accurate and timely data is available for the national registry.
Our colleagues at the Atlantic MRAs continue to actively participate in and champion the NRP. The Atlantic Registry is not a duplication of the NRP.
Atlantic physicians who are in good standing with their provincial board can opt-in to an Atlantic licensing agreement and are able to work in any of the Atlantic provinces seamlessly without additional licensing requirements.
The NRP will not change the need for the Canadian Medical Register. In accordance with the MCC “Registration in the Canadian Medical Register” policy, which was updated and approved by MCC Council on June 29, 2021: ‘Physicians who meet the eligibility criteria as defined in the policy will have their name added to the Canadian Medical Register and shall be known as “Licentiates of the Medical Council of Canada” (“LMCC”).’
The objective of the NRP is to facilitate licensure decisions and increase portability of licenses. The NRP could also be a key enabler to achieve a national license for physicians. But it’s only one part of a complex process.
Development of the NRP adhered to best practices with regards to privacy matters. A Participation Agreement, that defines data sharing between the MRAs and the MCC, will ensure that data sharing is aligned to jurisdictional laws and regulations. All data will be stored within Canada.
Development of the NRP adhered to best practices with regards to security matters. A comprehensive multi-layer security architecture is employed including networking and application firewalls, layered IP networks with security zones, and 7/24 security threat monitoring employing industry leading managed security providers.
• Demographic information including name, gender, year of birth
• Practice location(s)
• Phone number and email address
• Registration details
• Medical Identification Number for Canada (MINC)
• Disciplines
• Medical degrees
• Certifications
• Language(s) of practice
• Disciplinary actions
Yes – if a physician is registered in more than one province, they will have more than one entry in the NRP.
