Do family physicians with emergency medicine certification actually practise family medicine?

Since 1982 the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) has offered a certification program in emergency medicine for family physicians. To obtain this designation, most individuals do an extra year of emergency medicine training, while others choose the “practice-eligible” route by accumulating emergency department experience and then taking a clinical competency examination. According to the college, this program aims to help family physicians deepen their skills in an area of clinical practice that is integral to family medicine.  As such, the emergency medicine certification — CCFP(EM) — is viewed as a complement to family medicine training.