Japan and South Korea have now been recognised as having health systems that are comparable to New Zealand — giving recruiters and the health sector hope of a new potential pool of doctors to pull from.
The Medical Council added the two countries to its list of comparable health systems this week, which means doctors from there are able to have their credentials recognised here more easily.
Accent Health Recruiter Prudence Thomson said the addition of the two Asian countries to the list was exciting news that could see more doctors arrive to help ease our shortage — particularly in primary care.
“It’s early days, but as soon as we start advertising over there that there are jobs in New Zealand, and we’re looking for GPs, and they are welcomed, then I think it will be quite a high uptake.”
To help them ease into the New Zealand setting, after their credentials and other pre-work checks have been completed, the Medical Council allows doctors to practice here, albeit under supervision for the first 12 months.
Doctors that are not from comparable health systems have to go through a different and longer process, which begins with sitting the NZREX exam, before entering a training programme alongside junior local doctors.
The Medical Council added the two countries to its list of comparable health systems this week, meaning doctors from there are able to have their credentials recognised here more easily. (Source: 1News)
ProCare chief executive officer Bindi Norwell said having more doctors from Japan and South Korea doctors will enable the workforce be more reflective of our diverse populations too.
“This is something we need to embrace. We have a growing Asian community as well, and so the more diversity we can bring from other countries is fantastic.”
The news of a potential bigger pool of doctors came the same week the Health Minister Simeon Brown made a raft of changes aimed at boosting the primary health workforce.
Combined, he’s promised more than $79 million worth of funding, that among other initiatives will see up to 100 overseas doctors from non-comparable health systems be trained within GP clinics.
From next year it’ll also see up to 50 local graduates train in clinics annually too, a number still far short of the 500-600 the sector estimates it needs, and one that doesn’t include those who are expected to retire soon.
Royal New Zealand College of GPs president Samantha Murton said the tricky part will be how these new arrivals will be supervised within a system that is still struggling with shortages.
“The supervision of those people is the thing that’s going to be tricky.” she said.
“We need to recognise that’s a significant part of having a junior, whether it’s a nurse, or a doctor training in your practice.
“We need a way of making sure that’s remunerated, or supported in some way, so that people can actually do the training.”
There are also questions whether there’ll be a big enough pool of candidates, domestically and internationally, to fill the newly funded roles.
Medical Council figures show only 26 doctors from non comparable countries successfully sat the NZREX and have not yet gained registration.
While, it recently expanded placements for those still to sit the NZREX to 180, split across three intakes each year, the first session this year only say 54 candidates.
And domestically, Dr Allan Moffit, ProCare clinical director and GP, said the general practice pathway hasn’t always been a popular choice.
“Primarily we don’t have enough doctors coming through into primary care,” he says. “You know they’re choosing to go into other specialities, or indeed choosing to go overseas because the grass is greener across the Tasman.”
