Lawyer Paralegals and related occupations perform research and document preparation duties in law firms, legal departments in the private and public sectors, record search companies, or in self-employment.

Duties Document duties in law firms, and legal departments. Legal assistants assist Lawyers by interviewing clients. Assistants prepare legal documents and do legal research on records.

Working conditions and qualifications Most of the work is done in court houses, offices or law libraries Work full time, normal hours, and under pressure to get the work done. A college diploma in a paralegal program is required. Office training experience is beneficial 

Current workforce An average number of workers are employed full time throughout the year the salary is comparable with the provincial average.  As many law offices, large firms, real estate companies, land title offices, municipal, provincial and federal courts and government offices are located in urban areas employment in this occupation is concentrated in the Lower Mainland – Southwest region.  

Employment outlook and career paths Organizations employing paralegals and related occupations like offering real estate, financial, insurance and legal services, are expected to grow as the need for their services increases with growth in the provincial population. Law firms and other organizations may reduce costs and increase the availability and efficiency of legal services by hiring paralegals Recent graduates from the paralegal program generally obtain positions as junior paralegals. 

Family physician General practitioners (GPs) and family physicians diagnose and treat the diseases, physiological disorders and injuries of patients. They also look for health risks, address health prevention, and manage end-of-life issues. They are the primary contact for an individual and provide continuous care toward the management of a patients' health.

Duties Examine patients and take their histories, order laboratory tests, X-rays and other diagnostic procedures and consult with other medical practitioners to evaluate patients' physical and mental health Prescribe medications and administer treatments Perform minor surgery and assist with other surgical procedures Provide chronic disease management care Provide primary mental health care Provide emergency care Provide acute care management Inoculate and vaccinate patients Advise patients and their families on health care including health promotion, disease, illness and accident prevention Provide counselling and support to patients and their families on a wide range of health and lifestyle issues Perform patient advocacy role Co-ordinate or manage primary patient care Provide continuous care to patients, including palliative care support Supervise home-care services Report births, deaths, and contagious and other diseases to governmental authorities Deliver babies and provide pre-natal and post-natal care

Working conditions and qualifications Family physicians usually work irregular hours, including nights and weekends. They may also be on-call 24 hours a day when required to respond to emergencies Family physicians spend the majority of their time in their practice Because of the work, family physicians and general practitioners are exposed to infectious diseases physicians must be very careful while examining patients A doctor of medicine degree (MD) is required to work in this field. The MD requires at least three years of undergraduate studies, as well as four years of medical school. Graduates of medical programs undergo two years of accredited residency training. 

Current Workforce  A below average number of family physicians and general practitioners work full time throughout the year, likely due to choice rather than difficulty finding work. The full-time salary for this occupational group is the highest in B.C.  All general practitioners and family physicians are employed in the Health care industry. Most of these physicians work in the Lower Mainland-Southwest and Vancouver Island/Coast these regions have more hospitals and higher demands for health-care services. 

Employment and career paths Despite the steady increases in the ratio of physicians to population over the last several years, some patients in parts of the province are having difficulty finding an available family physician.  The Government of British Columbia has increased opportunities for medical education in the province through the two new medical programs at the University of Victoria and at the University of Northern British Columbia.  New graduates usually begin their career by taking on the role of physicians who cover for another physician that is on holiday, education leave, Currently, few GPs and family physicians set up independent practices