Sir, – The Irish College of General Practitioners’ (IGCP) plan to attract doctors from abroad to work in rural areas, while well-intentioned, will merely divert pressure from the HSE and Department of Health to do anything meaningful about the plight of rural practice (“Over 100 foreign doctors sought for rural GP practices in bid to ease shortage”, News, December 29th). What is sorely needed is a new contract with flexibility to recognise changing population and gender demographics, to incorporate optional part-time arrangements, and to provide appropriate supports and guarantees of sufficient annual and study leave to meet the ever-increasing challenges of contemporary practice. The current 50-year old, inflexible, ossified, all-or-nothing, 365/24/7 GP contract must be consigned to the bin.
The IGCP wants to encourage doctors to come mainly from English-speaking Commonwealth countries. These countries are full of Irish medical refugees who have fled a dysfunctional and despotic health service here to find a healthier work-life balance and who are unlikely to return.
What Kiwi, Wallaby, Springbok or Canuck in their right mind would make the reverse journey to flounder in rural Irish practice? – Yours, etc,
Dr CHARLES DALY,
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Abbeyside,
Dungarvan,
Co Waterford.
