More than 70 per cent of new doctors who started working in Ireland in 2022 were trained abroad, with the State becoming “highly dependent” on international medical graduates.
On Friday, the Irish Medical Council published its Medical Workforce Intelligence Report 2022, which showed risks to patient safety due to the long working hours for doctors.
A total of 3,008 doctors registered with the Medical Council for the first time in 2022, compared with 2,605 in the previous year, representing a 15 per cent increase between 2021 and 2022.
Some 28 per cent of newly registered doctors trained in Ireland, with the rest earning their qualifications outside the State.
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Pakistan, Sudan, and the United Kingdom were the three most common countries where international graduates trained, accounting for 3,191 doctors, or 45.8 per cent.
The report highlighted noncompliance with the European Working Time Directive (EWTD), which states employees should not work more than 48 hours over seven consecutive days.
In 2022, over one-quarter of all clinically active doctors in Ireland reported working more than 48 hours on average a week. Furthermore, over half of all trainee specialists reported working more than 48 hours per week, which has “further serious implications for patient safety”.
Furthermore, in 2022, 1,341 doctors, of whom 593 were women, voluntarily withdrew their registration with the Medical Council.
Of those who withdrew, 586 (43.7 per cent) obtained their qualifications in Ireland, whereas 755 (56.3 per cent) were graduates from medical schools abroad.
Among doctors who completed the voluntary withdrawal survey, 45.9 per cent offered detailed explanations on the reasons for withdrawing their registration.
These reasons included: limited career progression and training opportunities, poor working conditions, personal or family reasons, plans to practice abroad, and other reasons such as registration requirements and the emergency response to Covid-19 coming to an end.
Many doctors commented they withdrew as they have been practising medicine outside of Ireland for some time, or that they were planning to relocate to another country and practice there, either temporarily or on a long-term basis.
The most popular destinations were the United Kingdom and Australia, followed by Canada and New Zealand.
Other common destinations were international medical graduates’ native countries, such as Pakistan, where many doctors returned to work or to obtain further specialised training after their Irish experience.
Dr Suzanne Crowe, president of the Medical Council of Ireland, commended the increase in the number of women practising medicine in Ireland. However, she highlighted the number of doctors who withdrew their registration.
“Doctors who withdrew from the register in 2022 often cited personal and wellbeing-related reasons for deciding not to retain their registration. Balancing caring duties at home with onerous rosters and poor access to childcare is a big issue for doctors, especially those in training,” she said.
“Supports are available to doctors, and we must come together to support our colleagues who may be struggling. Just like everyone else, doctors can also fall ill or experience times of poor mental health.”
Prof Rob Landers, president of the Irish Hospital Consultants Association, said the number of withdrawals is one-third higher when compared to the previous year.
“However, the retention of our fully trained specialists is of even greater concern,” he said.
“Some 361 specialist doctors voluntarily withdrew from the Specialist Division of the Register in 2022. This accounts for 27 per cent of the total number of voluntary withdrawals.”
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