Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 June 2022
1640. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the estimated cost of increasing general practitioner trainee places by 10%; the number of places that this would create and the estimated cost of same. [29874/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe HSE takes several factors into consideration when making its annual assessment of the number and type of specialist training places required within each specialty including but not limited to, future medical workforce planning projections, the number currently in training and the training capacity within the health system.
The number of GPs entering training has increased steadily over the past number of years, rising from 120 in 2009 to 233 in 2021. 258 places will be available in 2022. The transfer of GP training from the HSE to the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) which was concluded in 2021 will allow for the introduction of a new service model for GP training in Ireland and the further expansion GP training capacity in the years ahead. The ICGP aims to have 350 training places available for new entrants per year by 2026. Until then, the annual increases in training places will be determined on an annual basis by the training capacity of the health system.
The annual year one cost of a doctor on the GP Training Scheme is approximately €100,000. With 258 places planned for the July 2022-23 training year, a 10% increase in training places would create an additional 26 places.
Based on these figures, the cost of a 10% increase in trainee intake for 2022-23 would be approximately €2.6 million.
