Foreign Medics Shunning NHS Amid Anti-Migrant Rhetoric and Racism Concerns
Jeanette Dickson has warned that anti-migrant rhetoric, negative media coverage, and abuse by NHS colleagues and patients are deterring foreign-born doctors and nurses from working in the UK. She cautions that without the contribution of foreign clinicians, the NHS could fail to operate safely given that General Medical Council data show 42% of UK doctors qualified abroad.
There is a record outward migration of foreign-born doctors alongside a stall in post-Brexit inward recruitment. Additionally, the number of nurses and midwives joining the NHS has fallen sharply in the past year. Factors driving this trend include political hostility to migrants, media coverage of immigration, and racist abuse or aggression toward foreign staff by both colleagues and patients.
Data from the GMC and Nursing and Midwifery Council indicate that more foreign graduates are either not coming to the UK or are leaving to work elsewhere. Dickson partly attributes this problem to Labour’s prioritisation of UK graduates for specialist training, which she argues discourages overseas-qualified doctors amid a global shortage.
In response, the Department of Health and Social Care stated that the NHS benefits from international staff and maintains a zero-tolerance stance on racism. They also acknowledged that training shortfalls require international recruitment and noted that a 10-year plan prioritises UK graduates and long-serving NHS staff for training.
