Sir, – The HSE deems a “success” its recruitment drive in India and Pakistan to fill vacant junior doctor posts here (HEALTHplus, July 24th).
However, in 2010 the WHO put in place a framework to halt this unethical practice of hiring healthcare workers from developing countries. Nations such as India and Pakistan have great difficulty providing healthcare because of service gaps due to a shortage of healthcare workers. When we poach their doctors we make it harder for people there to access basic health care and medical treatment. What is more, we do not even have the excuse of giving these dedicated doctors an opportunity to train and return home with new skills as most of the Indian and Pakistani doctors we take fill service, and not training, posts where they populate our hospitals performing menial tasks with little hope of career progression.
This unethical practice by the HSE is just the latest in a long history of mistreatment of Ireland’s junior doctors.
The findings from surveys by the HSE, IMO and others of our doctors are truly shocking, and do not get as much attention as they deserve.
Half of our interns leave Ireland one year after graduating. Almost half of Irish interns rate the training they receive as “poor”, with a similar figure for other junior doctors in Irish hospitals. Over two-thirds feel demoralised and dissatisfied with their job. Most disturbing, one third regret ever choosing medicine as a profession. These issues are not new; they have been highlighted for years – for example in the Buttimer report (2008).
The HSE would be better served addressing these problems and make Ireland a desirable place to stay and practise medicine so that we keep our own doctors, rather than unethically poaching those from countries that need them more to a country that cannot treat them well. – Yours, etc,