Vol. 398 No. 5
70 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health the steps he is taking to eliminate the crisis in post-graduate specialist training in this country in order to stop medical graduates emigrating and to avoid a crisis in the hospital services where there is a high percentage of non-nationals working at present.
I do not accept that there is any crisis in post-graduate specialist training in medicine.
Irish doctors have always had a tradition of going abroad in pursuit of further training and experience in order to further their careers. The majority of doctors who go abroad return to take up senior medical posts bringing with them the benefit of training and experience obtained abroad. Similarly this country has traditionally provided post-graduate training and experience for doctors from under developed countries.
I am conscious that in recent times the proportion of doctors going abroad at an earlier stage in their careers has increased which in turn has increased our reliance on non-national doctors to fill non-consultant hospital doctor posts, particularly in the smaller hospitals.
However as the Deputy may be aware all doctors employed in the public health service whether national or non-national doctors must be registered in the register of general practitioners maintained by the Medical Council. This ensures that all medical personnel have an appropriate standard of training and clinical experience for the practice of medicine in this country.
The balance of national and non-national doctors is being kept under review in consultation with all the interests involved.
