Canadian health-care workers are leaving rural areas and moving to larger centres, according to a report released Thursday by the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

The report, "Distribution and Internal Migration of Canada's Health Care Workforce," tracks migratory patterns of physicians, dentists, pharmacists, physiotherapists and registered nurses within Canada over a 15-year period, between 1986 and 2001.

The report finds that each year, rural areas of Canada lose on average 1.3 per cent of their doctors to urban areas, with the time period between 1996 and 2001 showing the biggest decline.

"The Society of Rural Physicians of Canada believes that we're 1,000 general practitioners short in rural Canada," Dr. Roger Pitblado, the author of the study and a senior research fellow at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ont., told CBCNews.ca on Thursday.

He said certain groups like physiotherapists and dentists are starting to move into rural areas, "but it's nowhere near the amount needed."

The report also notes that Canada's health care workers are aging at a rapid rate. Among the occupations examined in the study, the average ages in 2001 ranged from 35 years for dental assistants to 48 for physicians. In 1991, the average ages ranged from 32 to 45.

"Overall, Canadian health care workers are aging faster than the general workforce," reads the report.

'The headlines seem to focus on the movement of Canadian health care workers to the United States in particular. But if you start counting the numbers of movers and their impact on continuity of care, it's internal migration that's particularly worrisome.'— Dr. Roger Pitblado

Pitblado foresees a shortage of health care professionals in Canada. "I think that within the next five or 10 years, we'll definitely have a problem."

He thinks the lack of health-care workers is the result of several factors.

"I think there's a combination of things happening here. There's perhaps our lack of success recruiting at the younger age group and also not retaining some of the health care providers at the older age groups," Pitblado said.

Alberta a health-care hotspot

Alberta, B.C. and Ontario were the top destinations for health care workers, the report finds.

Alberta was the recipient of the most health care workers between 1996 and 2001 — because of its "booming economy," according to Pitblado.

Ontario and B.C. were the only two provinces to report increases in health care professionals during 1986 to 1991 and 1996 to 2001.

On the other hand, Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan reported the greatest net losses of health care providers to other provinces between 1986 and 1991 and 1996 and 2001.

"Certainly, Newfoundland, Saskatchewan and Manitoba are going to see great difficulties," Pitblado said.

The ratio of health care workers per 100,000 people in Canada decreased by two per cent between 1991 and 2001. In 2001, there were just under 750,000 people classified as health care workers nationwide.

Pitblado said that the migration of health care workers within Canada is much more pronounced than to the U.S.

"The headlines seem to focus on the movement of Canadian health care workers to the United States in particular. But while that's definitely important, if you start counting the numbers of movers and their impact on continuity of care, it's internal migration that's particularly worrisome," he said.