The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between location and specialty of training and practice characteristics such as type of practice (i.e. community versus academic), socio-demographic profile of patients and their complexity, hospital/health facility affiliations and workload/productivity. The analysis required an extraction of registrant data from the University of Toronto Postgraduate Web Evaluation and Registration (POWER) system for a cohort of exiting residents and fellows from 1993 to 2003. The data extract was linked to several administrative databases held by ICES, including physician practice and billing information from the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) and anonymized patient demographic data from the Registered Persons Database (RPDB). Results of this study will inform workforce policy issues such as the overall contribution made by Toronto graduates to Ontario, other Canadian provinces and international practice pool of physicians, trends regarding medical career choice, similarities and differences between career choices of International Medical Graduates versus Canadian Medical Graduates, impact of location/program of training, impact of length of training and profile/geography of patients served by graduates of Toronto. The study will aim to create a methodology/template for analysis that can be applied to other medical schools and catchment areas in human health resource planning. Chan B, Willett J. Factors Influencing Participation in Obstetrics by Obstetrician-Gynecologists. 2004; 103(3):493-498. Noble J, Baerlocher MO. Future Practice Profiles of Canadian Medical Trainees. Clinical and Investigative Medicine 2006; 29(4):288-289. Watson DE, Katz A, Reid RJ, Bogdanovic B, Roos N. Family Physician Workloads and Access to Care in Winnipeg: 1991 to 2001. Canadian Family Physician 2004; 171(4):339-342.

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This article explores the need for and the problems with digital preservation. Digital documents are much more easily discovered and shared than their analog counterparts, but not only is there a mistaken belief that digital preservation will occur without conscious intervention, there are also outstanding technical issues to be resolved. Even when these problems are recognized, it is unclear what materials should be preserved. Medical librarians have an important role to play in these decisions and should engage with their communities and play an active role in the process.

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