According to health officials, the UK must continue to hire thousands of foreign doctors each year since there aren’t enough trained here.
By 2038, four out of every ten UK doctors will have had their training abroad, according to the General Medical Council.
An NHS workforce strategy released this year will more than increase the number of medical school spots in the UK and attract more through apprenticeships — but it will take years to see results.
The number of doctors working in the UK is increasing, with 63% of new recruits in 2022 obtaining their medical degrees abroad (23,838 people).
The GMC’s chief executive, Charlie Massey, stated that imported doctors “bring skills and experience that are critical to our health services.”
Meanwhile, since 2020, the number of medical students at British universities has decreased.
There are more than 125,000 vacancies across the NHS, with staff shortages adding to long waits.
Sir Julian Hartley, boss of NHS Providers, said yesterday: “Everything that we can do to retain and develop valued doctors and other staff is crucial.
Despite diversity, there are still concerns about racism in the health service.
The 2022 NHS staff survey found 20 per cent of non-white staff experienced discrimination from a patient or member of the public, and 17 per cent experienced it from a colleague.