HUNDREDS of doctors from India and Pakistan have begun to arrive in Ireland to help bring a solution to the junior doctor shortage.

Sean McGrath, National Director of Human Resources within the HSE, said on Morning Ireland on RTE Radio 1 this morning that the HSE has had 250 doctors from India and Pakistan apply for visas and 111 of them are to arrive this week.

He said they will be “slotted in to where the vacancies are”, depending on their speciality and locations and that it will be “business as usual” at emergency departments.

Today the Medical Practitioners (Amendment) Bill 2011 will be discussed in the Seanad.

Under this bill, applicant doctors from outside the EU can pass an assessment set down by the Medical Council.

The council will then assign the doctors to suitable posts.

When asked by Morning Ireland why there is such a difficulty recruiting doctors and keeping them in Irish hospitals, McGrath said there are “a number of answers to that question”.

Among the reasons he gave was that lifestyle choices made by doctors are different to 10 years ago.

McGrath said that the new doctors will help to ensure that the emergency departments keep on schedule – currently, one third of the people who arrive in A&E are not seen within the target time of six hours.

“It will get better,” he said, adding that staff will be “making sure appropriate care is delivered”.

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