A BBC investigation has found that overseas doctors are being recruited by British healthcare companies and made to work in the private healthcare system under appalling conditions.
A joint DAUK-BMA survey on the same issue has found widespread poor conditions, low pay and excessive working hours for these foreign doctors.
The BBC spoke to DAUK’s Learn Not Blame co-lead Dr Jenny Vaughan who had helped some of these doctors.
“She receives many complaints from Resident Medical Officers and says the UK healthcare system has developed into two tiers – one for NHS doctors, the other for international recruits working in the private sector.
NHS doctors can only be scheduled to work up to 48 hours, and if they request, up to 72 hours a week.
“No doctor in the NHS does more than four nights consecutively because we know that it’s frankly not safe,” says Dr Vaughan.
“This is a slave-type work with… excess hours, the like of which we thought had been gone 30 years ago.
“It is not acceptable for patients for patient-safety reasons. It is not acceptable for doctors. ”
Read the full story here.
https://youtu.be/f4jwt91B7GU
