A new campaign to recruit more General Practitioner doctors (GPs) to come to Scotland has been launched.
The initiative includes targeted print and digital advertising and is part of the SNP Government’s commitment to increase GP numbers by 800 by 2027.
The SNP Government has been very focussed on recruiting and retaining GPs, and Scotland’s headcount increased by 277 from 4,918 to 5,195 between September 2017 and September 2021, despite many retiring.
Furthermore, trainee recruitment in Scotland this year has so far been the most successful of any of the last five, with 99% of GP training posts having been filled.
The new recruitment campaign aims to attract GPs to Scotland from other areas of the UK and elsewhere, building on a range of measures which also include increasing undergraduate placements, looking at training placements to boost future capacity, incentivising moves to rural practice and providing a wide range of development and support opportunities for GPs throughout their careers.
The campaign is supported by the Royal College of General Practitioners and features two GPs who relocated from London.
Kenneth Gibson MSP said:
“The SNP Government has long since had programmes to recruit and retain GPs including through rural programmes, and in 2022/23, medical school training places are being increased by at least 100 per year and the number of funded widening access places is being doubled, from 60 to 120. “Meanwhile, the SNP Government is committed to recruiting a further 800 family doctors by 2027 and this campaign, which focuses on the unique attractions of working as a GP in Scotland, supports that aim.”
Through the GP reform work, and the 2018 Contract, over 3,220 healthcare professionals have been recruited into multi-disciplinary teams to support practices.
This helps to deliver the full range of services and ensures patients see the right person at the right place at the right time to treat their condition.
For more information, visit gpjobs.scot .
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