This story was first published in digitalhealth.net
Government fails to detail how retired doctors plan will work
Ministers have failed to provide any details about how it will use retired doctors to help tackle the coronavirus outbreak.
Conservative MP Dr Dan Poulter tabled a parliamentary question to Health Secretary Matt Hancock last week, seeking clarification on ‘what steps the government is taking to ensure that retired medical staff will be (a) re-registered and (b) re-certified to practise in the event that they are required to work as a result of Covid-19’.
Included in the government’s coronavirus action plan, Prime Minister Boris Johnson pinpointed plans to call back to work NHS ‘leavers and retirees’ to help relieve pressure on an NHS workforce that is expected to be overwhelmed by the virus.
However, a majority of 120 former NHS employees who responded to a Guardian callout were resistant, and in some cases hostile, to the idea.
Poulter, who also works part-time as an NHS psychiatrist, said the lack of detail coming from the Health Secretary and Department for Health and Social Care was concerning, especially as the idea could help the health service cope with a huge rise in the number of very sick patients.
The DHSC has said only that it ‘has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available’.
Dr Chaand Nagpaul, the BMA’s council chair, said: “If the government is serious about recruiting retired doctors back into the NHS to deal with Covid-19, it must make the plans and details known to facilitate this in an effective way. Retired doctors have a wealth of knowledge and experience and some may be willing to contribute their skills during this emergency. However, there needs to be clarity about how they will be registered to provide medical services, including their scope of work and training required. These logistics will take time and therefore it is important that this information is made clear now so that retired doctors can plan accordingly.”
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