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'breath of fresh air:' u.k. couple documents move to b.c. after seeing doctor recruitment ad
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dr. saad khan and his wife samantha, an occupational therapist, moved to west kelowna from the u.k. this summer in response to a b.c. health recruitment ad he spotted on facebook.
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last winter, a facebook ad advertising opportunities in b.c. caught the eye of u.k. doctor saad khan.
at the time, he couldn’t find the province on a map.
but, several months later, he was on a plane with his wife, samantha, an occupational therapist, prepared to start a new life in west kelowna, an ocean away from kettering.
“it has been worth it,” said saad. “we love it here.”
the couple has been documenting their journey on instagram and tik tok, including their first day at the lake, first wildfire season and first dairy queen ice cream.
as b.c. recruits international doctors to fill shortages, the number of doctors trained in countries outside canada granted full licence by the b.c. college of physicians and surgeons has doubled since last year.
some 117 international medical grads received full class licensure between march 1 and july 6 of this year, compared with 60 over the same period in 2024, according to numbers provided to postmedia news.
the number of applications from u.s.-trained doctors has more than quadrupled.
the college received 90 applications from u.s.-trained doctors from march 1 to july 4. a few days later, amendments came into effect to allow doctors who have completed certain u.s.-based training and board certification to be immediately eligible for full licence. from july 7 to aug. 31, the college received another 157 applications.
the 247 applications between march and the end of august compares with 56 over the same period in 2024.
the khans recently went paddleboarding on a lake near their new home in west kelowna.
the khans said they miss family, friends and the supermarket aldi, but west kelowna already feels like home.
“it’s a breath of fresh air living here,” said samantha, who runs the couple’s social-media accounts: khans.on.the.move.
saad said the facebook ad prompted him to join groups where he learned more about moving to b.c. he also connected with health match b.c., which recruits doctors, nurses and other health professionals on behalf of the b.c. government.
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originally from pakistan, saad worked as an emergency doctor in the u.k. for 10 years but felt increasingly burned out after covid-19. he retrained as a family doctor but still felt disillusioned with the national health service.
“doctors in the u.k. are overworked and underpaid,” he said.
he also encountered an increasing amount of racism, both in society and at work.
after deciding to move, the couple had choices.
“the whole world was our oyster,” said samantha.
both canada and australia are trying to recruit doctors in the u.k. there was also competition among provinces.
before deciding to move, the khans visited toronto and calgary, but it was when their plane touched down in kelowna that samantha knew “this is it.”
saad said the couple didn’t choose b.c. because it was the easiest province to move to. taxes and housing costs were higher, plus there was more red tape than other provinces, but they were struck by b.c.’s natural beauty and diversity. he was also happy that b.c. has a longitudinal family physician payment model, rather than “fee-for-service.”
“my values align more with the values of b.c.,” he said.
saad said the west kelowna clinic where he was offered a job has 11 doctors, six of whom trained outside of canada.
he’s found it rewarding to help members of the okanagan’s punjabi community who don’t speak english very well.
“it’s great to see the smile on their faces when i speak to them in their language,” he said.
samantha said that with 10,000 followers, the couple’s social-media content has found a “niche” among others considering a move to b.c.
with a happiness that is contagious — and makes their videos hard to stop watching — the couple is exploring all that b.c. has to offer. they’ve also opened up about the racism saad experienced in the u.k.
samantha said people in their new community have been “welcoming and warm,” particularly when they find out the couple has come to canada to work in the medical field.
dr. saad and samantha khan, an occupational therapist, on their way to work in the u.k. before they moved to kelowna.
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samantha said becoming licensed in canada as an occupational therapist is a longer and more expensive process than that of a doctor, including exams. for now, she’s focused on settling into life in the okanagan.
the couple can’t buy a home until they have permanent resident status, but with a rental apartment with a view of both the lake and mountains, it might be hard to top.
saad said he’s working to persuade his younger brother, also a doctor in the u.k., to join him in b.c.
this article was originally published in the vancouver sun on september 9, 2025.
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