Thanks for the info. I lived in Ontario for over a decade, and Quebec for half a decade. There were grumblings about a shortage of family doctors even when I was there a decade ago, but I never had any trouble finding a family doctor in the GTA. But it sounds like the situation is quite different in BC and elsewhere.
I'm guessing it's partly a function of where family doctors like to settle? Most of my friends who are family doctors end up in Ontario.
Also, in Ontario, Nurse Practitioners (who often work in partnership with a physician) are able to provide equally good primary care, so the system is actually quite scalable if you're not strictly looking for MDs. In the US, physician assistants and medical assistants often provide primary care. In Canada NPs often fill that role.