'Government inept over junior doctor recruitment'
09/05/2008(16:58)
A report by MPs has criticised both the government and the medical profession for last year's debacle surrounding the recruitment and training of junior doctors.
The House of Commons Health Select Committee report followed the implementation of the government's controversial Modernising Medical Careers (MMC) scheme.
The attempts to streamline training for doctors and introduce a new online applications system sparked outrage when more than 1,000 UK-trained junior doctors were left without training positions while doctors from outside the EU obtained jobs.
Health committee chairman Kevin Barron commented: "The Department of Health, other relevant government departments and the medical profession must get a grip and resolve this mess that has diminished the reputations of all those concerned."
A spokesman for the Department of Health said a MMC Programme Board had been established, more than half of which is made up of junior doctors and representatives from the medical profession, to advise ministers on training and recruitment.
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