Letter: Doctors look abroad for a cure to their complaints

Sir: The disillusionment that is beginning to drive young UK doctors abroad, as discussed in your leading article, is shared by many of their senior colleagues. The objective of the Government's NHS reforms, the effective and efficient use of public funds in healthcare, was surely right. What is wrong is the mechanism it chose to achieve that.

The internal market, that is competition for work between Trusts, inevitably means that patient needs are adjusted to suit financial targets rather than adequate funds being available to meet patient needs. Thus, changes are made - often without discussion with those who actually look after patients - that alter the way doctors provide care, without any evidence that the care is improved thereby and at times causing patients harm.

Unless doctors are actually brought into finding ways of improving both the efficiency and standards of patient care, those of us who cannot escape abroad will look eagerly towards retirement.

Yours faithfully,

JOHN SEARLE

Consultant Anaesthetist

Exeter,

Devon

31 August