Getting Registered

Midwives are legally required to be registered with the regulatory authority in the province or territory in which they practise.  Internationally-educated applicants must take part in assessment processes in order to demonstrate that they have the skills, knowledge, and abilities required of a Canadian Registered Midwife. 

Registration Requirements
Requirements for full registration differ by jurisdiction. A comparative chart is provided here for your information. Note: In most jurisdictions, eligibility requirements for entering the assessment process are lower than registration requirements and candidates are permitted to make up the difference in a period of supervised practice with restricted registration status.

Assessment: Processes & Eligibility Criteria
Legislation in the Northwest Territories requires applicants for registration to be registered or assessed as eligible for registration in another Canadian province or territory. If you wish to work in the NWT, you should contact NWT Health Professional Licensing to discuss your situation.  

Assessment processes in other provinces and territories include:

1. Application. The applications include providing documentation of midwifery education, English language fluency, and clinical experience.
2. Written examination. Applicants in BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Nova Scotia must take and pass the Canadian Midwifery Registration Examination (CMRE).  Applicants in Ontario pass a final pre-registration examination offered as part of the International Midwifery Pre-Registration Program until 2008 when they also will be required to take the CMRE.
3. Clinical examination. All provinces require successful completion of a provincialy-based Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). In these OSCEs, candidates are examined in a series of scenarios where they act as a midwife in normal and emergency clinical situations.  In some of these scenarios, candidates may be asked to answer oral examination questions as well as, or instead of, acting as a midwife.  For bridging candidates in the western provinces and northern territories, the clinical examination is an integral part of the Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project. Applicants in Ontario are required to take an OSCE as an entrance examination for the International Midwifery Pre-Registration Program as well as completing OSCEs within the program.
4. Orientation.  Most provinces require applicants to participate in an Orientation to Practice.  The length and breadth of this program varies widely by jurisdiction from 3 days of post-examination sessions to coursework within the Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project or Ontario’s bridging program.
5. Supervised Practice.  Although all provinces include access to a period of supervised clinical practice, for candidates who, upon application, do not meet full registration requirements, the purpose, length, and other details vary by province.  However, in all cases, candidates required to complete supervised practice are assessed by their supervisors prior to being permitted to practise in an unrestricted category of registration.

British Columbia
The Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project (MMBP) is a bridging program for qualified midwives educated outside of Canada and is the route to registration for internationally-educated midwives in British Columbia. Full details at Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project.   More information about registration is available at www.cmbc.bc.ca.

Alberta
Internationally-educated midwives seeking registration in Alberta will be required to apply to the new 2009 bridging pilot for western and northern Canada. Full details at Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project  More information about registration is available at http://www.alberta-midwives.com/.

Saskatchewan
The Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project (MMBP) is a bridging program for qualified midwives educated outside of Canada and is a route to registration for internationally-educated midwives in Saskatchewan. Full details at Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project.  More information about registration is available at www.saskmidwives.ca.

Manitoba
The Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project (MMBP) is a bridging program for qualified midwives educated outside of Canada and is the route to registration for internationally-educated midwives in Manitoba.  Full details at Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project.  More information about registration is available at www.midwives.mb.ca.

Ontario
Internationally-educated midwives must successfully take and pass the International Midwifery Pre-Registration Program (IMPP) which integrates an extensive orientation to practice in Ontario and prior learning assessment.  This part-time bridging program is offered by Ryerson University’s G. Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education on an annual basis.  It involves two semesters of coursework and a semester long clinical  placement – approximately nine months. Experienced candidates can challenge certain courses and shorten their program to four or five months.

Applicants must have:

1. Recognized education or registration in a jurisdiction in which midwifery is recognized and regulated
2. A minimum of 40 births as a primary midwife, OR a minimum of 30 births as a primary midwife and 20 births as an assistant or second midwife.
3. English language fluency

Entry is competitive.  If applicants are assessed to meet the above requirements, they will be invited to take an Objective Structured Clinical Examination.  Applicants are then selected based on their examination score. Spaces are limited.

More information about IMPP is available at www.ryerson.ca/ce/midwif.  More information about registration is available at http://www.cmo.on.ca/ 

Nova Scotia

The Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project (MMBP) is a bridging program for qualified midwives educated outside of Canada and is one of the two routes to registration for internationally-educated midwives in Nova Scotia.  Full details at Multi-jurisdictional Midwifery Bridging Project.  The other route to registration for internationally-educated midwives in Nova Scotia is through the International Midwifery Pre-Registration Program (IMPP) at Ryerson University in Ontario. Full details at www.ryerson.ca/ce/midwif. More information on registration is available at www.mrcns.ca.

Quebec
See http://www.osfq.org for more information on registration.

Last revised: December 2011