A survey of more than 1000 physicians currently practicing in Canada reveals that older doctors plan to have long careers, but physicians under age 45 years envision earlier retirements.

Medscape conducted the online poll of 1028 physicians, including 321 general practitioners and 707 specialists, between March 27, 2025, and July 14, 2025.

Overall, 72% of respondents said that they expected to practice into their 60s or 70s, but 57% of physicians under age 45 years expected to retire in their 40s or 50s. The main reasons they cited were burnout and a desire for more time for personal pursuits.

The survey respondents were predominantly physicians older than 45 years (n = 951). Most of them identified as male (n = 604) and were working full time (n = 634). A total of 278 respondents were office-based, and 385 were hospital-based.

Respondents were split on the question of whether age is a determining factor in one’s ability to practice medicine, with 47% saying yes and 53% no. Among those saying yes, age 74 or 75 years was considered “too old.” 

Plans for retirement timing also differed by gender. Women were more likely than men to envision an exit in their 40s (3% vs 1%), 50s (17% vs 8%), or early 60s (24% vs 17%).

Optimism and Uncertainty 

Overall, for those planning to leave medicine at an older age (late 60s, 23%, 70s, 29%; 80s or later, 6%), the top reasons across age groups, genders, practice types, and settings were feeling that they still had more to contribute as a physician, that medicine is their passion, and that medicine is their identity. The latter idea was more important for general practitioners (GPs) than specialists (42% vs 33%). 

However, 29% of those planning to keep working also said that they were concerned about their patients’ well-being (37% of GPs vs 25% of specialists). This was true more often for office-based than for hospital-based practitioners (43% vs 18%).

Burnout was more commonly reported by office-based than hospital-based respondents (88% vs 70%).

Complete retirement, rather than gradual retirement, was envisioned by about one third of respondents, especially among those older than 45 (36% vs 12%), and among men compared with women (38% vs 28%). 

Women were more likely than men to believe that they would not have enough money saved to retire earlier (37% vs 27%). And although 71% of respondents overall said they were “very confident” or “confident” that their family would have enough money after their retirement, more men than women were “very confident” (44% vs 34%), and more women were “somewhat confident” (25% vs 18%) or “not at all confident” (11% vs 6% of men). 

Most respondents (94%) anticipated at least some income from registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs) and investments, but about three quarters also expected income from a pension plan or old age security. Age did affect these expectations, however: A significantly larger percentage of respondents older than 45, compared with respondents under 45, anticipated having this source of income (76% vs 45%). Employer pension was anticipated by more hospital-based than office-based practitioners (16% vs. 9%). 

Comparing Quebec with the rest of Canada, a similar percentage of respondents (13% vs 12%, respectively) anticipated pension and old age security income, although a higher percentage of Quebec respondents also anticipated RRSP and investment sources (71% vs 62%). 

Income from the sale or rental of properties and employer pension were less commonly anticipated by respondents from Quebec compared with those from the rest of Canada (7% vs 11% and 4% vs 6%, respectively).

While most respondents said that they would continue some sort of medical activities after leaving the profession (whether keeping up with medical developments, reading medical journals, or belonging to medical societies), only 36% of those under age 45 years said that they would keep up with medical developments, compared with 56% of older physicians. Overall, 43% of younger physicians, 30% of specialists, and 33% of hospital practitioners said that they would not engage in any of the choices presented. 

Most respondents expressed optimism about retirement, but a larger percentage of women (38%) than men (32%) was very confident that life after medicine would be rewarding. In addition, 38% of respondents younger than 45 said that they would feel relieved to retire, compared with 21% of those aged 45 or older.

Late-Career Transitioning 

As a recently retired physician, Ivan Silver, MD, professor emeritus of psychiatry at the University of Toronto’s Temerty Faculty of Medicine and head of the faculty’s Late Career Transitions and Retirement Initiative, is well placed to comment.

The limitations of the survey include a lack of details on how the sample was selected, the diversity of respondents, and the response rate, he told Medscape Medical News. But he added that the findings are a good reflection of his group’s experience with late-career physicians. 

“Interest in this topic has significantly increased over the past 5 years,” Silver said, adding that “burnout is often a precipitant to retirement: especially early retirement” and that “patient wellness is a common concern, especially for community-based physicians and especially in rural areas where physicians have great difficulty finding MDs to follow their patient roster after they retire.” 

The issue of physician identity looms large for retiring physicians, Silver added. “Among physicians in their late 60s and 70s who are still working full time, many say they don’t know what else they would do, that they haven’t cultivated other interests over the years and would be lost without their work. Some of these physicians leave their clinical practice only to return 6 months later in a part-time role (or ‘echo career’) and continue working. This gives them more time to settle into the idea of leaving and to search for other interests.” 

The survey’s findings of young and older physicians’ different attitudes about retirement and attachments to work also coincide with Silver’s observations. “Younger physicians seem more interested in their wellness, with an increased emphasis on the life part of work-life balance,” he said.

One of the most difficult parts of transitioning to retirement is starting the process, Silver continued. “In an academic setting, when your colleagues learn of your intention to slow down or retire, some physicians are concerned they will be passed over for a leadership opportunity they still covet, have their office downsized or their teaching reduced. Several retired physicians have told us about the lack of acknowledgment at retirement of their careerlong work and contributions to society, either by their department, hospital, university, or provincial or national college. This is another large gap that should be rectified.” 

While Silver agrees that older physicians are generally optimistic about their retirement plans, they are also concerned about the details of the planning process, he said. “We find, at least in an academic setting for the Baby Boomer group, that they are looking for opportunities within their departments or the university immediately after retirement (like mentoring and coaching students) and that these opportunities have not been sufficiently organized for this group. Not knowing what academic activities could be continued after retirement is a source of anxiety for late-career physicians. Some academic physicians want to have library privileges and to maintain their hospital email. This is often not possible currently. 

“In my opinion,” Silver added, “there is a huge gap in this area, and not just for university-affiliated physicians. Medical societies and physicians themselves need to organize and advocate for university affiliated postretirement affiliation and activities.” 

Silver’s group has organized an online group of University of Toronto physicians who meet to discuss retirement planning and access experts on topics like closing one’s practice, financial management for late-career physicians, and echo and encore careers.

“We have created a reading list on late-career transitioning by medical specialty, including several podcasts and vlogging sites, and we will be publishing a practical guidebook for physicians,” he said. “In the future, we are looking at establishing a coaching program for physicians as required.” 

Silver reported no relevant financial relationships. 

Kate Johnson is a Montreal-based freelance medical journalist who has been writing for more than 30 years about all areas of medicine.