Search is Powered by Google
Follow us on:
Follow our health news on Twitter
Follow Our News on Facebook
Personalization
login | register
Medical Students / Training News

Increase In Medical School Places Welcomed, But Retention Still An Issue, Says Students' Association, New Zealand

Main Category: Medical Students / Training
Article Date: 01 Oct 2008 - 9:00 PDT

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon view / write opinions   rate icon rate article
Current Article Ratings:

Patient / Public:not yet rated

Health Professional:5 stars

5 (1 votes)

Article Opinions: 0 posts

The recommendation to increase the intake of medical school entrants by 100 places over the next 4 years, which appeared in the Medical Training Board's discussion papers released this afternoon, has been welcomed by the New Zealand Medical Students' Association (NZMSA). " It has become evident in recent years that New Zealand cannot continue to rely on foreign trained doctors to man our health system, and that we must make a commitment to train more of our own doctors" Anna Dare, NZMSA President said.

"Increasing the number of students taken into New Zealand's medical schools represents a long overdue step towards achieving self sufficiency in our medical workforce."

In the last 25 years there have been only two small increases in medical school numbers - one in 2003 and again in 2008, despite a growing population and a vast increase in the burden of chronic diseases such as diabetes and obesity.

Ms Dare cautioned however that New Zealand's problems with retention of it's medical graduates must also be addressed if the increase in medical numbers was to have any effect on solving workforce shortages. "Currently we lose 30% of our doctors overseas within the first 3 years of graduation" Ms Dare said. "Without simultaneously addressing our poor retention rates, we may simply end up training an additional 100 medical students for Australia"

Alongside incentives to keep doctors in New Zealand, such as debt relief, Ms Dare believes high quality training and a system which values and respects those working within it was important. "Promoting a health workforce climate that ensures our newest graduates see New Zealand as a viable place to work and train is paramount, especially as we look to further increase the number of students we train."

The Medical Training Board discussion documents also included recommendations for training and the need for broad oversight and ongoing medical workforce planning.

New Zealand Medical Students' Association




Personalized Homepage Weekly Newsletters Daily News Alerts
Hemophilia Opioid Induced Constipation Pneumococcal Disease ADHD Anxiety Asthma Atrial Fibrillation Autism Cancer Diabetes Lung Cancer Lupus Medicare / Medicaid Obesity and BMI Pancreatic Cancer Stem Cells All 'What Is...' Articles

Ophthalmology Urology
About Us News Licensing Free Website Feeds Free Tools & Content Tell a Friend Accessibility Help / FAQ Article Submission Links Contact Us

add medical news today to your facebook
medical news gadget

Please fill in our survey

Swine Flu Image

Swine Flu Updates

- Latest Swine Flu News
- What is Swine Flu?
- Map Of H1N1 Outbreaks
- Swine Flu - Top 20 FAQ
- Daily Email News Alerts
Stick with Medical News Today for the latest news updates on swine flu.


These are the most read articles from this news category for the last 6 months:
Top Article Star
Significant Sleep Deprivation And Stress Among College Students, USA
10 Aug 2009
Stress about school and life keeps 68 percent of students awake at night - 20 percent of them at least once a week. Stress affects the quality of their sleep far more than alcohol, caffeine or late-night electronics use, a new study shows...


Menopause - The Ups and Downs of Change
Menopause - The Ups and Downs of Change

Menopause brings with it physical and emotional changes. But there are advantages to this time of life.

more videos are available in our health videos section.