Canadian College certification exam turns 50

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) we are very pleased to share with you a special milestone. June 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the Certification Examination in Family Medicine and the Certification in the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CCFP) special designation.

The certification exam and CCFP designation were launched in 1969 to recognize the rigorous assessment required of family physician skills and knowledge and to help advance family medicine in Canada. Just 12 candidates successfully completed the first exam and earned the CCFP designation. Today, more than 1,600 family medicine candidates earn their CCFP designation every year, which ensures they have the broad scope of generalist skills necessary to provide quality care for patients across the country.

We are proud of the certification process and the CCFP designation, which reflect the highest standards of training, assessment and lifelong learning for family physicians in Canada.

As part of our 50th anniversary celebrations, we would like to say thank you for your ongoing collaboration with the CFPC. We value our working relationship with you and believe that it is fundamental to the continued growth and success of family medicine.

If you would like to read more about the class of 1969 and their outstanding contributions to family medicine over the last 50 years, please visit our website. We also welcome your organization’s support to our social media activities as we celebrate the anniversary in June and through the remainder of the year.

Sincerely,
Paul Sawchuk, MD, MBA, CCFP, FCFP (president)  Francine Lemire, MD CM, CCFP, FCFP, CAE (executive director and CEO)

WONCA's response

On behalf of our President, Dr Donald Li, and the entire WONCA Executive, we send our very best wishes and congratulations to the College of Family Physicians of Canada on celebrating its 50th anniversary.

CFPC has always played a very active and integral role in WONCA, as one of its founding members in 1972 – and even before that, hosting the first International Conference of family doctors in Montreal in 1964. Of course you have also provided two Presidents to World WONCA – Dr Donald Rice (1974-76) and Dr Donald Rae (1989-92) – as well as whole series of dedicated and expert indivduals for our Executive and committtees, the most recent being Professor Ruth Wilson who served as North America Region President from 2013 to 2018. And of course you too, Francine, who served as WONCA Member at Large and Honorary Treasurer from 2010 to 2013.

CFPC has always been a strong, committed and steadfast supporter of WONCA and we thank you most sincerely for that. We wish you all congratulations on your first fifty years and look forward to working with you as you grow and succeed even more in the next 50 years.

With our very best wishes
Dr Garth Manning
Chief Executive Officer