Association calls on government to place unemployed doctors
The Junior Doctors Association of South Africa is calling on government to urgently place more than 600 qualified doctors who remain unemployed.
The association's secretary-general Dr. Micheal Van Niekerk says KwaZulu-Natal is among the top three provinces with a high number of doctors waiting for placement in public hospitals.
Van Niekerk has launched a social media campaign, #UnemployedDoctors, to highlight the issue.
"More than 600 junior doctors are unplaced coming 01 January 2018," he says.
Van Niekerk described the situation as a crisis.
"We are living in a society with one of the highest patient to doctor ratios, where it is absolutely essential for our junior doctors to fulfil this service, which is a statutory obligation from the Department of Health," he says.
Van Niekerk has launched a social media campaign, #UnemployedDoctors, to highlight the issue.
"More than 600 junior doctors are unplaced coming 01 January 2018," he says.
Van Niekerk described the situation as a crisis.
"We are living in a society with one of the highest patient to doctor ratios, where it is absolutely essential for our junior doctors to fulfil this service, which is a statutory obligation from the Department of Health," he says.
The association is calling on the Premiers of KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and the Western Cape to immediately release funded posts for the desperate final year medical students.