5. TARIANA TURIA (Co-Leader—Māori Party) Link to this
to the Minister of Health
E whakaaeana ia ki ngākōrero a Tim Malloy, te Tiamana o Te RōpūTākutaRongoāWhānui, arā, Tākuta ā-Taiwhenua, ikī, e onotekaumārima ō-rau o ngāTākuta ā-Taiwhenuanōtāwāhi, ā, kāretēneiitētahimeamatatūtanga ā meakenei, mehemeakāre, he aha ai?
[Does he agree with the comments of the Chairman of the Rural GP Network, Tim Malloy, that overseas doctors now make up 65 percent of rural doctors, and that this is not sustainable in the future; if not, why not?]
Hon PETE HODGSON (Minister of Health) Link to this
I almost agree. The percentage may be a slight overestimate. The 2005 Rural Health Workforce Survey found that 43 percent of general practitioners responding to the survey were New Zealand trained, 29 percent were trained in Britain, 14 percent were trained in South Africa, and 14 percent were trained elsewhere, including Australia.
What explanation can the Minister give for the fact that 1,400 international medical graduates register here each year, compared with little more than 300 New Zealand trained doctors, producing a New Zealand health system in which 80 percent of its new doctors are foreign?
The member draws those details from a Sunday Star-Times article that was published on Sunday, which included doctors who come here for a very short time indeed—even for conference purposes. It is not reasonable to include those data when one is looking at the movement of doctors across our borders in both directions.
Maryan StreetIt has done a good deal. The pilot Otago medical school rural full-immersion programme was started earlier this year; Auckland University has a similar but larger initiative starting next year in Northland; for overseas-trained doctors who pass the New Zealand registration exam, a year of mentored supervision is being offered, starting in about 6 weeks’ time; and then, of course, there are all the existing supports for rural general practitioners and primary care services that my colleague the Hon Damien O’Connor has been investing in for many years.
Jo GoodhewHow does the Minister explain the results of recent research that shows that 28 percent of the money dedicated to recruiting and retaining a rural health workforce—approximately $1.2 million—was captured by bureaucracy, so it cannot possibly be helping the rural workforce crisis?
That research would raise my suspicions immediately because its estimate of the total amount of money we spend on rural general practitioners and other primary care services is a gross underestimate of the total.
Barbara StewartIs he aware that overseas-trained doctors are overrepresented in complaints upheld by the Health and Disability Commissioner; if so, what is his department doing about this?
Yes, I am aware of a statement that Ron Paterson, the Health and Disability Commissioner, made on Monday, but let us get the statement correct. He stated that the data suggests that there is a slight issue and that it is something to monitor. He stated: “I will certainly be monitoring to see if there continues to be this slight over-representation.”
What response has the Minister made to Dr Vaishali Mona Verma, coordinator of the overseas doctors forum—a forum established by the Associate Minister of Health Damien O’Connor—who advised the Prime Minister on 16 May 2007: “At present an overseas trained doctor finds several gaps in the system. We are bullied, assaulted and suffer all kinds of human rights abuses by our Medical Council, Royal College of General Practice supervisors”, and what does he intend to do about that?
As I mentioned to the House earlier, the main outstanding need for overseas-trained doctors appears to be a year of mentored supervision. That is an offer that many of them, I suspect, will take up. It will be available to those doctors who pass the New Zealand registration exam and it will begin on 1 July—about 6 weeks from now. I am not sure how many people will take it up, but we have funding initially for, I think, 28 places.
Is he aware that foreign doctors are overrepresented in the complaints upheld by the Health and Disability Commissioner—as was stated by the honourable Barbara Stewart—and what explanation can he give for the fact that Dr Vaishali Mona Verma suggested in his email to the Prime Minister on 16 May 2007 that, despite regular email contact during 2006, “The Minister of Pacific Affairs, Minister of Justice, Minister of Ethnic Affairs and the Minister of Health did nothing about the breakdown of this ethnic health service for Indian people which I had established”, and what does he intend to do about it?