The HSE is undertaking “significant marketing overseas” to recruit consultants, including over 50 emergency medicine (EM) specialists, it has informed this newspaper.
These strategies include “targeted marketing” in Australia and New Zealand, close collaboration with training colleges and the Medical Council, and “bespoke marketing campaigns” developed in conjunction with clinicians for posts that are challenging to fill.
According to the HSE National Doctors Training and Planning (NDTP) Emergency Medicine Workforce in Ireland 2024-2038 report, it will be necessary to recruit 50-55 additional EM consultants from outside of the Irish training programme over the next five-to-six years.
“Beyond this the demand for consultants in EM will be met sustainably by the domestic training pipeline,” according to the report.
Asked about the recruitment of 50-55 EM consultants from abroad, the HSE spokesperson told the Medical Independent that it had invested in recruiting consultants across all specialties. This has included “significant marketing overseas with close collaboration with the training colleges and the Irish Medical Council”.
Recruitment activity had resulted in a 14 per cent increase in the number of consultants from January 2023 to June 2024.
“There are significant recruitment strategies developed and implemented to reach eligible candidates both in Ireland and abroad,” the spokesperson added.
These strategies included targeted marketing in Australia and New Zealand to “harness” interest among Irish-trained doctors who have travelled abroad to gain further experience.
There is also direct marketing of qualified candidates through social media and medical networks. This year, engagement through the training colleges and professional networks “will further expand” and will be supported by an increased presence at medical conferences, stated the HSE spokesperson.
According to the NDTP report on the EM workforce, there were approximately 182 whole-time equivalent (WTE) consultants working in HSE-funded services in June 2024. This figure would need to increase to 335 WTEs by 2038 to meet patient demand.
Meanwhile, the intake of higher specialist trainees for the dual-training specialties of medicine will need to increase from 81 in 2023 to 117 in 2030, according to the latest NDTP specialty specific review.
This would result in the total number of higher specialist trainees in these specialties expanding from 408 to 585. “The proposed expansion in the number of trainees is contingent on a number of factors, including a long-term commitment to substantially expand the consultant workforce and sufficient supply of suitable applicants for the programme,” writes NDTP Medical Director Prof Anthony O’Regan in the report’s introduction.
This report covers nine specialties: Cardiology, clinical pharmacology and therapeutics, endocrinology and diabetes mellitus, gastroenterology and hepatology, geriatric medicine, infectious diseases, nephrology, respiratory medicine, and rheumatology.
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