Hundreds of foreign GPs work in Britain unchecked: NHS chiefs criticised for not testing EU doctors
By Sophie Borland
Last updated at 2:29 AM on 13th October 2010
Health trusts are ignoring pleas to test whether foreign doctors providing out-of-hours care can speak English.
As many as three quarters of those flying in for lucrative shifts may not have faced language or competency tests, figures show.
Ministers and health regulators have been urging trusts to carry out proper checks after the tragic death of a pensioner at the hands of an incompetent German doctor in 2008.
Dr Daniel Ubani gave a 70-year-old ten times the recommended dose of painkiller after flying in for his first NHS shift. Health trusts are ignoring pleas to test whether foreign doctors providing out-of-hours care can speak English
David Gray, 70, died after Dr Daniel Ubani, who could barely speak English, gave him ten times the recommended dose of painkiller after flying in for his first NHS shift. Mr Gray’s son Stuart, who is a GP himself, said he was horrified at the figures.
'Lessons haven’t been learned, changes haven’t been made,' he said. 'What more does it take? It’s only a matter of time before there’s another death.'
Figures obtained through a freedom of information request show that as many as 1,500 foreign doctors working in surgeries across Britain have never been tested.
The General Medical Council, which �regulates doctors, wrote to all trusts �earlier this year urging them to carry out stringent checks.
The GMC automatically registers any doctor registered in another EU country who applies to work here but is banned from testing them for competency.
EU rules state such tests threaten ‘the free movement of labour’, and countries in breach face heavy fines from Brussels.
But there is no law against health trusts who then employ foreign doctors �running their own tests to ensure they are no �danger to British patients.
In France, for example, foreign doctors are invited for ‘interviews’, and grilled on their ability to speak the language.
And doctors who apply to work here from countries outside the EU are subject to stringent tests on medical ability and language before they are registered.
Victim: David Gray was killed by Dr Ubani. His GP son said he was horrified that three-quarters of foreign doctors may not have faced language tests
Campaigners have accused health trusts of using the EU rules as an excuse and warned it is only a matter of time before another patient dies because of a �doctor’s incompetence.
The figures, obtained by Pulse magazine, show that just 23 per cent of foreign doctors employed by Primary Care Trusts have had language tests and a mere 17 per cent have been tested on their competence.
Shockingly, the trust which employed Dr Ubani - Cambridgeshire PCT - admitted that less than a third of its overseas �doctors had faced language or competence checks.
Professor Steve Field, from the Royal College of GPs, said: ‘We’ve given PCTs a wake-up call and it’s disgraceful they still aren’t taking the issue seriously.’
Rising numbers of foreign doctors have been commuting to Britain ever since the new GP contract was brought in by Labour in 2004. Under the new system, British doctors no longer have to look after patients outside of office hours and care has been taken over by private companies, which often hire doctors from overseas.
It is not known exactly how many �foreign GPs fly in to cover out-of-hours shifts but they are employed by up to a third of all trusts.
They commute from Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Hungary, Italy and Switzerland and can earn up to �200 an hour.
Only 35 PCTs were able to provide figures on the numbers of doctors who had passed language tests, and just 20 trusts had figures for competence checks.
But if the figures provided were extrapolated for all 152 trusts in England and Wales, as many as 1,500 foreign doctors would not have been tested.
The Coalition has pledged to pass new laws to ensure foreign doctors are properly checked but has not given details.
A Department of Health spokesman said: ‘Employers and those contracting with health workers can, and indeed should, verify the language knowledge of any person they appoint to ensure they can undertake the duties being asked of them.’
Explore more:
- People:
- David Gray
- Places:
- Brussels,
- France,
- Poland,
- Lithuania,
- Germany,
- Italy,
- Hungary,
- United Kingdom,
- Wales,
- Switzerland
- Organisations:
- Department of Health,
- General Medical Council
Add your commentsComments (75)
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We must return immediately to making up our own rules.
We've given the EU a fair crack of the whip at telling us what to do.
It's turned out to be largely very expensive,certainly for us,nonsense.
As we see recently the French have acted in their own interests and
sent the Roma packing.
We have to start taking the same stance by saying politely but very
firmly NO. It's not good for our people.- keith anthony, pulborough,england, 13/10/2010 10:22
This comes to the core of the problem of our EU membership, not only are we feeding this monstrous, undemocratic organisation �46 million a day as net EU contributors, its rules will not allow us to pick and choose who can live and work here from other EU countries and it also gives incompetent doctors, and nurses, the right to work here virtually unchallenged even if they don't understand a word of our language. Better qualified doctors and nurses who are fluent in English from the Commonwealth countries are barred.
This highlights the madness of EU membership, we cannot afford it either fiscally, democratically or even for our own well being. Only UKIP is willing to get Britain out, the other pro-EU political parties are a waste of space and time.
- Derek Bennett, Walsall, England, 13/10/2010 10:11
dealt with a patient who had seen a foreign locum GP she was unable to diagnose a barn door otitis media, referred her to ENT. Thankfully the patient recovered, fully thanks to a 95p course of amoxil. Scary days indeed, does anyone check qualifications?
- lancashire lass, bath, 13/10/2010 10:11
Not just medics, dentists and nurses too.
- chas warner, taunton uk, 13/10/2010 10:04
Another valid reason for us to get out of the EU - the list grows longer every day. Furthermore, these Doctors damage the reputation of all other NHS Doctors!
- Desmond, North Devon UK, 13/10/2010 10:01
Skills in the command of the English language should be the first and most basic requirement for anyone coming here to work,especially in the public sector.Surely,the ability to speak English is ESPECIALLY paramount in the medical field where treatment and drugs are involved and people's lives are at risk.Patients should refuse to deal with any level of medical care when they cannot fully understand the staff or have any concerns re.the staff members level of English.IF PATIENTS REFUSE TO DEAL WITH THEM, THEY WILL NOT BE ABLE TO WORK OR JEOPARDISE PEOPLE'S LIVES.....
- MACK, EALING, 13/10/2010 09:58
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Wednesday, 13 October 2010
Hundreds of foreign GPs work in Britain unchecked: NHS chiefs criticised for not testing EU doctors | Mail Online
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