State should provide structured contracts to help keep medical graduates in Ireland – Burke

Fine Gael Cork Senator Colm Burke has today (Saturday) proposed a major reform to our medical education system here in a bid to encourage more newly qualified doctors to remain in Ireland after graduation. Senator Burke was speaking at the Intern Conference at UCC.

“We’re spending over €90 million to produce an average of 600 newly qualified doctors from Irish medical schools every year. This works out at an average of €30,000 for each of the five years Irish medical students spend at college. In return for this State investment, over half of all medical graduates leave the country in the year following their internship. We must do something to stop this medical brain drain.

“I believe medical students should be required to sign a contract to work for the HSE for three of the first five years following graduation.   In return, the HSE should provide graduate contracts which include a three year structured programme of training and professional development, with pay and conditions which compare favourably to other English speaking countries. If the students don’t want to sign such a contract they should be asked to pay the full market fee for three years of their medical education.

“Such a reform would ensure an appropriate return for the State for a high level of investment and it would also ensure the Irish medical students are receiving structured post-college training which provide certainty, security and a clear career path.   

“A HSE study carried out in 2011 found that 46% of new doctors were no longer in the Irish health system after their internship. The reasons for their departure included lifestyle choices, training opportunities abroad and dissatisfaction with the medical training structures in Ireland. Three years on from this report no action has been taken to address the situation. I completed my own study in June 2012, which shows two thirds of graduating medical students did not intend to stay in Ireland.

“The HSE, the Department of Health and the training bodies have continued to kick the can down the road and have failed, refused and neglected to set up proper structured training for medical doctors who have completed their Intern year. And while the exodus of medical graduates has continued to grow over the last decade, our health system has focused on recruiting graduates from outside of Ireland. Over 6,000 of the 16,500 medical doctors registered with the Irish Medical Council are not Irish graduates.  

“We can’t go on producing surveys, studies and reports without action being taken. In order to provide an efficient healthcare service we require an adequate number of medical doctors. We won’t be able to develop the health service we require without them.”

ENDS