The cost of recruiting doctors from overseas

sir – J Meirion Thomas (Comment, August 10) shows that, while thousands of suitable students are turned down by British medical schools every year, 60 per cent of new doctors are trained abroad.

In addition to the loss of human capital, the worldwide recruitment by rich countries of doctors from poor countries results in an £11.4 billion annual cost in excess mortality in low-income countries. India, Nigeria, Pakistan and South Africa suffer most.

This is truly overseas aid in reverse. Dr John Doherty Stratford-upon-avon, Warwickshire

sir – I write in support of Professor Meirion Thomas’s plea for more medical schools on two fronts.

First, while doctors from low-tomiddle-income countries justly aim to enhance their training by working in Britain, there is no guarantee that they will return to their home countries, where they are much needed.

Secondly, would it not be sensible for the Government to revisit those universities that failed in their bids for medical schools in 2018? The University of Surrey in Guildford was an applicant with the facilities and faculty in place, but at the time was considered to be politically in the wrong place.

Neil Weir

Guildford, Surrey

sir – More serious than our shortage of medical school places is the shortage of general hospitals suitable for training newly qualified students.

The constant closure of hospitals since nationalisation in 1948 has resulted in a reduction of hospitals in Britain from 2,688 in 1948 to 1,257 in 2019.

When I graduated in 1966 it was, even then, sometimes not easy to find a good general hospital to learn the basic practice of medicine and surgery. Recently, I was told by a surgeon friend that postgraduate training places are now “like gold dust”.

Dr Max Gammon

London SE16