In October 2004, the then Minister of Health, Hon Annette King established a Doctors in Training Workforce Roundtable to address issues relating to the:
- Clinical training of doctors relationship of training with undergraduate medical education.
- Environment that supports the development of a trained workforce.
- The District Health Boards and all the major organisations representing the medical profession were represented on the Roundtable which presented its report, The Training of the Medical Workforce 2006 and Beyond, to the Minister of Health, Hon Pete Hodgson, in December 2005.
Key Results
This report discusses the problems, and seeks to provide solutions and an action plan for implementation. The main recommendations arising from this report are that:
(a) medical education and clinical training is recognised as a continuous learning process, from the first year of undergraduate education to registration as a medical practitioner and beyond
(b) the current arrangements for medical education and training be rationalised and co-ordinated to ensure that the split of funding between education and health is not detrimental to the continuum of learning
(c) education and training of medical practitioners be responsive to the health needs of the community.
To achieve recommendations (a), (b) and (c), we further recommend that:
(d) to achieve gains in the short term and to start the change process, the circuit breakers set out in section 4 are introduced as a matter of urgency
(e) the Ministry of Health:
(i) establish and maintain better links between those involved in the education and training of medical practitioners (Ministry of Education, Tertiary Education Commission, Clinical Training Agency, medical colleges, universities and district health boards) to ensure that:
- a co-ordinated approach is taken to the continuum of medical training from undergraduate level to the different levels of registration for medical practice
- the requirements of the Medical Council of New Zealand are met
- education and training programmes take account of the needs of the health sector in the delivery of medical services
(ii) review, as its first joint task with the other stakeholders, the current provision and funding of undergraduate medical education and its links to prevocational clinical training, giving particular consideration to:
- the role of the trainee intern year
- reviewing the second prevocational year and facilitating recognition of prior learning in subsequent vocational programmes
- providing more resources to assist training in primary care settings, rural areas, and emergency departments
(iii) contract an appropriate body to critically appraise how the traditional apprenticeship training model could be enhanced within the current service delivery environment (eg, by introducing more competency-based training components and the use of providers of health services outside the public hospitals)
(f) District Health Boards New Zealand's Workforce Development Group be supported and appropriately funded to provide input to the providers of medical education and training on the demand for, and role of, medical practitioners in the future, in both community and hospital settings
(g) District Health Boards New Zealand.s Resident Medical Officer Strategy Group continue to work with the New Zealand Resident Doctors. Association through the implications of, and the administrative problems associated with, the Collective Agreement with the New Zealand Resident Doctors. Association
(h) any recommendations for long-term solutions from District Health Boards New Zealand's Resident Medical Officer Strategy Group take account of the recommendations of the Doctors in Training Workforce Roundtable.