Britain is gradually closing
its doors on Indian doctors.
UK, May 24, 2005
KINSUK BASU
The Telegraph
It’s been almost three weeks since Shankar Roy (name
changed on request) returned to the city from Liverpool,
but he is yet to come to terms with the shift.
Dreams shattered, Roy has been grappling with a disturbing
reality — that Britain is gradually closing its doors
on Indian doctors.
“It’s very bad out there. With a master’s
degree, you have to start from scratch, like a house staff
in our hospitals. And that, too, if you manage to land
a job. Most don’t. If you are keen to stay in Britain,
you have to do odd jobs at restaurants and shops till
you get an offer. And most offers are for part-time work,”
Roy said.
The 34-year-old surgeon is not alone. At least seven
doctors have returned in the past three months, unable
to find employment in the fiercely-competitive UK job
market.
Several others, who had stayed on hoping every day for
the past few years that things would change, are now desperately
seeking jobs in the fledgling private healthcare industry
in the city.
While such applications would come in twos and threes
in the past, the number has suddenly shot up.
The AMRI Hospitals, for instance, has received several
applications from NRI doctors in the UK who would like
a regular job in the city. A large number of applicants
want contractual employment as well.
“When we placed an ad in BMJ, there were no major
expectations. But the response has been overwhelming.
Doctors have applied from all corners of the UK,”
said S.B. Purakayastha of the hospital.
According to doctors who have just returned from the
UK, things became difficult after the British government
introduced foundation courses for medical graduates from
this year.
A doctor in Britain must now complete two years of the
course to be eligible for registrarship.
A four-year-stint as a registrar qualifies one as consultant.
Under such a system, there is virtually no room for medical
graduates from abroad, the NRI doctors said.
