More effort needed to cut student debt, says Medical Association

4.00pm

New Zealand needs to find ways of cutting the student debt of medical graduates to ensure more of them stay here, the NZ Medical Association (NZMA) says.

The number of New Zealand doctors working in Australia has boomed with New Zealanders being lured with free airfares, accommodation and A$120 ($138) an hour, to cover shifts at regional public hospital emergency rooms.

NZMA chairman Dr Tricia Briscoe, who described the flight of doctors to Australia as "distressing" on Sunday, said Britain and Canada were also actively recruiting New Zealanders.

She said it wasn't merely the fact that graduates were heading to other countries which was a problem.

"While New Zealand doctors have always gained overseas experience, our concern now is that they have little incentive to come back," Dr Briscoe said in a statement today.

"High medical student debt is the number one issue facing our young medical graduates. This is pushing our graduates overseas where they will earn more money."

The Step Up scheme, which will allow some students to avoid high debt levels, was a step in the right direction but did not go far enough, she said.

Convincing debt-riddled graduates to either stay in New Zealand or return after overseas experience was only part of the solution, however.

The Government also needed to encourage more New Zealanders to study medicine to ensure there were sufficient doctors in the future, she said.

Other initiatives Dr Briscoe suggested were needed to increase doctor numbers included:

* extra funding for District Health Boards to offer incentives to attract and retain doctors in areas of shortage;

* increased subsidies for GP services extended to all parts of New Zealand;

* a further increase in places at medical schools for New Zealand students, backed up by more funding for postgraduate training;

* a comprehensive policy around the recruitment of overseas-trained doctors, who already form a high proportion by international standards of New Zealand's workforce.

"New Zealand needs these doctors and we continue to welcome them, but they should not just be a substitute for our own New Zealand-trained doctors who are leaving," Dr Briscoe said.

"It costs the New Zealand taxpayer a lot of money to train our doctors, let's ensure we keep more of them here."

Earlier today, the New Zealand Nurses Organisation said many New Zealand nurses were heading overseas but that there was no monitoring of this as there was for doctors.

"The basic information to allow workforce planning is not available," chief executive Geoff Annals said.

It was essential the ministry started collecting statistics, and that nurses were offered incentives to keep them in the job.

"We know we have a nursing shortage of around 2000 nurses, but as well as nurses leaving to work overseas, many nurses stay here and take up other jobs on better pay."

Opposition parties yesterday criticised the Government's efforts to retain doctors, though not all blamed student debt.

ACT MP Heather Roy said health professionals were being encouraged to leave as they were increasingly being made accountable for systemic problems and because doctors weren't earning enough compared to management here.

National MP Lynda Scott said lifestyle overseas as well as money was part of the issue.

"But if you don't feel valued, why would you stay?"

Government duty minister Trevor Mallard said the situation in Australia was not as rosy as it looked, saying the cost of insurance for Australian doctors was pushing many of them overseas.

- NZPA