Leader comment: Degree will not cure NHS ills

The recruitment shortfall faced by the NHS in Scotland is a crisis which will only get worse before it gets better.

Scotland needs more doctors, and the new graduate-level medical course is a step in the right direction, but this measure alone cannot plug the gap with only 40 places available each year. Picture: PA

There have been numerous initiatives over the years to encourage trainees into the profession, not least the £20,000 “Golden Hello” initiative. Yet the problem remains a persistent one.

In principle, the latest idea of introducing the country’s first graduate-level medicine course is sound. The degree will take only four years to complete, and is open to graduates from any discipline. According to health secretary Shona Robison, it is an “innovative way to attract talented people”.

That is not in doubt. What is, however, is the scheme’s potential impact on a deficit of GPs in Scotland which is projected to grow to 828 by 2021. The degree provides for only 40 places. If the Scottish Government is so enthused by the idea, why is it not being rolled out elsewhere? There are also questions to be asked of the quality of the course, given its truncated timescale. The NHS is in dire need of doctors. The abbreviated degree is a useful tool, but it is no panacea.