Huge NHS doctor-training blunder

This is just the latest episode in a series of hugely wasteful doctor-training blunders. CREATING doctor shortages seems to be a British specialty

DOZENS of foreign doctors have been forced to abandon their training as consultants in the Scottish NHS following a bureaucratic own-goal by UK ministers. The medics were invited to Scotland under the Fresh Talent scheme to help address the chronic shortage of consultants and have had $500,000 each spent so far on their training. But new immigration rules imposed by the Home Office mean their trainiing has had to be cancelled before they make consultant. It is now feared the junior doctors will leave Scotland, robbing hospitals of badly needed skills and wasting around $12m of taxpayers' cash.

The British Medical Association (BMA), the body which represents doctors, last night branded the situation "unacceptable". Sources close to Jack McConnell, the former First Minister who introduced Fresh Talent, revealed UK officials were warned about the effect the new rules would have but failed to act. Fresh Talent was launched in 2004 to boost Scotland's population and economy. Some overseas medical students used the scheme to apply for work permits, while others used alternative visa programmes. But it has now emerged that the scheme was not accounted for under the UK Government's new immigration laws.

It means that if a trainee doctor holds a Fresh Talent work permit and wants to remain in the UK for more than two years after graduating from medical school, they must stop training, forcing them to either remain in junior doctor positions or leave the country. The revelation comes amid a huge rise in the number of consultant posts lying vacant across the NHS in Scotland. There are 4,035 consultants working in the NHS in Scotland, a record high. But the number of vacant posts, 290, is almost double that of 1997.

Last night, Dr Andrew Conway-Morris, deputy chairman of the BMA's Scottish Junior Doctors Committee, described the immigration problem as an "unacceptable" waste of taxpayers' money. He said: "These changes mean that doctors who have been educated and have begun their training in NHS Scotland could be prevented from accessing speciality training posts. "Because of this confusion, these doctors' careers are under threat. This is unacceptable for doctors who have demonstrated a commitment to the NHS in Scotland and is a waste of taxpayers' money."

One junior doctor affected by the scheme is 24-year-old Kah Fai Wong, at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. Wong, from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, wants to become a consultant cardiologist. Across the NHS in Scotland, 7.4% of consultant cardiology posts are vacant. Wong transferred to Aberdeen University in 2005 to complete his studies. But despite three years of training in the NHS in Scotland, he may now have to move to New Zealand to fulfil his ambition. He said: "I was told it made sense to do the Fresh Talent scheme, and I did so, but I have now learned that there will be restrictions on my visa. This takes away my chance to apply for speciality training. "I had planned to stay in Scotland for a long time and train to a certain level, but now it looks like I will be going back to Malaysia or to New Zealand or Australia. "Colleagues of mine in other parts of the UK have the right visa and can apply for the training posts. But I know of at least six people in my area who have the Fresh Talent visa, who are from Malaysia and Kuwait. We went for the wrong visa and now we are facing problems. "Basically, I am left with no option. I could work as a locum in this country but that is not career progression. It is dreadful. I would love to stay in this country but if the visa is causing me trouble, I have no choice. My career is the top of my list."

Margaret Watt, chief executive of the Scotland Patients' Association, said: "I know there is a shortage of some consultants, such as cardiologists, because I have a heart condition myself. There are long waiting lists. "If these doctors want to fill these posts, I don't know why anyone is stopping them. We have a shortage of doctors, nurses and consultants in the NHS. "This move will deny patients access to top professionals. If we had more consultants, we would have shorter waiting lists. This is wasting doctors' time and taxpayers' money."

It is understood that senior Labour politicians were warned of the problems by the previous Scottish Government when the immigration laws were being planned. A source close to McConnell said: "This issue was raised and had been dealt with. It has obviously slipped off the radar." A spokesman for the Scottish Labour Party said: "The Fresh Talent scheme was a great achievement. The SNP Government should work constructively with the UK Government to find a sensible solution without jeopardising our new points-based immigration system." The Scottish Government declined to comment.

A spokeswoman for the Home Office said: "We are still looking at the system and the options for medical graduates."

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Australia: Dying man's wait for public hospital bed

A terminally ill man who spent 26 hours in the Caboolture Hospital's emergency department waiting for a bed does not want others to suffer the same fate. John Shea, from Bongaree, said he was admitted about 5pm on September 3 but it took until about 3pm the next day to find a bed in a public or private hospital.

Mr Shea, who has brain and lung cancers, said he spent another four hours waiting for an ambulance to take him to a private hospital in Brisbane. ``In four or six weeks I should be gone but I'd like to see other people be protected,'' Mr Shea said. ``They're understaffed and it's not good enough and I think we deserve something better from our politicians.''

Mr Shea contacted the Herald after reading last week's article on claims northside ambulance stations were understaffed. His wife Maureen said the Caboolture Hospital's emergency department was full when her husband was there. ``They had people coming and going everywhere,'' Mrs Shea said. ``It was just a bit chaotic.''

The Herald asked the Health Department to comment on the Sheas' claims but it did not respond before deadline. Earlier this month it said the Caboolture Hospital's usual occupancy rate was 90 percent.

Former local Australian Medical Association representative Dr Ray Huntley said the hospital had been running at close to capacity for three years and something should have been done to boost its capacity.

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