Internes? Most Canadians don’t spell it with the second “e,” but that wasn’t all that was outdated about the moniker Canadian Association of Internes and Residents (CAIR).
Internships ended in Canada more than two decades ago, and CAIR has apparently been discussing a name change for almost as long. Now it’s actually happened. After consulting with board members, stakeholders and residents, CAIR has a new name: Resident Doctors of Canada.
The term “interne” is a vestige of how the medical education system used to work, says Laura Spragge, the group’s communications manager. Canadian medical school graduates used to serve one-year internships to obtain general licences to practise medicine and could then opt to pursue specialty training. But that ended in 1993.
“This year was a particularly good opportunity for rebranding because we also underwent many other transformations,” says Dr. Christina Nowik, the association’s president.
These changes include a governance review and a new strategic plan to focus on training (including curriculum development, accreditation and examination policy), wellness (to help residents become “healthy and resilient doctors”) and representation (as the “unified voice” of Canada’s 9000 residents).
It was time to make CAIR “a more modern and streamlined organization,” says Nowik. Feedback on the changes has been positive so far, although she acknowledges that there is always confusion accompanying a name change. “CAIR was a nice acronym, I have to admit!”
CMA President Dr. Chris Simpson congratulated Nowik and the association on the changes and praised the group for providing excellent representation for residents. “I know these changes will help to further cement that strong support.”