29.05.18
Junior doctor job offers reissued following admin error
Junior doctors who had job offers withdrawn following an administrative error have now been placed, the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has announced.
The error was discussed at length at the RCP’s council on 22 May, and the college has said that it is committed to conducting a thorough external review, commissioned by Health Education England, through the Medical and Dental Recruitment and Selection governance route.
An additional 39 trainees who had not been offered a post during the first process have also now received job offers in the re-run process so far.
Responding to the update, Dr. Jeeves Wijesuriya, chair of the BMA junior doctors committee, welcomed the news that junior doctors had been placed, and that those offered a “less desirable” post are receiving individualised support.
He said: “While we were appalled by the error that led to so many junior doctors having their offers rescinded and the subsequent anxiety this caused for those involved, credit must go to the RCP for their response.
“The RCP have worked with us to resolve the issue in the most timely and fair manner it could. We must also recognise the understanding and resolve shown in the last three weeks by the affected doctors, who the BMA has also been supporting throughout.”
He stressed that in the long term, the whole system must “seriously reflect” on the error in order to guarantee that it will not be repeated in the future, and ensure that junior doctors are valued as “individuals with their own lives and needs” as well as members of the NHS workforce.
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