Retention of Overseas Trained Specialist Deteriorating

Retention of Recently Registered Overseas Trained Specialists Is Deteriorating

Overseas-trained doctors lost three years after gaining vocational registration in New Zealand

Overseas-trained doctors lost three years after gaining vocational registration in New Source: Compiled from Medical Council NZ data, 2012

Retention of immigrant doctors (international medical graduates - IMGs) who have registered as specialists in New Zealand over the past decade has deteriorated markedly, according to Medical Council registration data.

By three years post-vocational registration (see chart), the latest trends indicated more than 25% of IMGs are lost to New Zealand compared with around 15% at the beginning of the decade. Aside from a few small fluctuations, similar trends emerge in subsequent post-registration years.

By 10 years post-registration, approximately one third of IMGs are no long practising here. Around two-thirds of new vocational registrants are hospital specialists.

These trends are particularly concerning because 42% of New Zealand’s specialist workforce are IMGs. The high turnover has created a high level of instability. It results in an increasing share of specialist posts being filled by locums on costly short-term contracts (many of whom are themselves IMGs).

Not only is this wasteful but it reduces the capacity to bring cohesiveness to health services, which can have serious implications for the efficiency and effectiveness of hospital care.

ENDS

© Scoop Media