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We are victims of racist mindset: Indian doctors

LONDON: Indian doctors working in Britain’s National Health Service (NHS), on Friday, said they were victims of a “racist mindset” after a report found that more overseas doctors were likely to face disciplinary action over allegations of professional misconduct or incompetence than their British-trained peers.

Last year, the number of foreign doctors struck off the medical register was three times more than the number of domestic colleagues. Of the 54 doctors struck off the rolls, 35 were foreign-trained.

Official figures for Indian doctors, reported for alleged incompetence, were not available but sources close to Indian medical circles acknowledged that the number was “pretty high”. Out of every 10 complaints, six were likely to relate to Indian doctors.

However, Dr. Ramesh Mehta, president of the British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO), attributed the trend to “racism” arguing that most of the complaints tended to be of a “minor” nature. Overseas doctors were often picked for mistakes which were overlooked when committed by British doctors, he said.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is to investigate why foreign doctors are more prone to being disciplined. It has launched a series of research projects to look into the causes.

“What we are doing is looking at where the issues might be,” said a spokesperson adding: “We regulate all doctors, not just overseas-trained doctors, and we are also looking at what happens when doctors who qualify in the UK move into their first clinical jobs in the UK, or when they are ‘promoted’ and take on extra responsibilities.”

Dr. Mehta welcomed the research and pointed out that it was in fact his organisation which had “encouraged” the GMC to look into the issue as it believed that the figures were deceptive. Most of the complaints, he pointed out, came not from patients but from hospital managements.

“The Government itself has admitted that the NHS is institutionally racist. We believe that managers in hospitals have a mindset that overseas doctors are inferior to British doctors and they often report them for trivial mistakes such as minor communication problems. They overlook them when similar mistakes are made by British doctors,” Dr. Mehta said.

He said the BAPIO would “fully cooperate” with GMC’s research.

In the past, GMC has been accused of racially discriminating against doctors of ethnic origin but a study by the Policy Studies Institute cleared it of the charge. The study followed concern amid foreign doctors that complaints against them were pursued by GMC with greater vigour than those against their home-grown colleagues.

Foreign doctors have been at the centre of damaging headlines in the wake of the attempted London-Glasgow terror plot involving several overseas doctors including two from India. Prime Minister Gordon Brown has ordered tougher security checks for foreign medical personnel before they are employed.

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