Foreign doctor working in South Africa

[ghoti]

I have a doctor friend who has just finished their medical studies and who is busy doing their United States Medical Licensing Exams (US MLE) to work in the US. After my friend has worked in the US she wants to work here in South Africa.

What do foreign doctors need to do to be able to qualify to work locally? IE, all the papers and examinations and/or conditions required?

[Kloon]

I guess you make better money being a doctor in SA than in the States.

[Daveogg]

I guess you make better money being a doctor in SA than in the States.

Ummm No quite the opposite i would think.

Their are however many reasons why a foreign qualified doctor would want to work in SA.

To answer the original question, It all depends on the original qualification, internship done etc.

S/He would have to contact the HPCSA to get the finer details.

http://www.hpcsa.co.za/hpcsa/default.aspx?id=143

[Waaib]

I once heard two young (late 20's) doctors talking in Obs Cafe in Cape Town. They sounded like Irish accents to me. The one appeared to be telling the other one about working in SA. As far as I could tell one had been here a while the other just arrived. The 'veterans' comment was something like, 'You'll see more knifings and GSW's in one week here than in 5 years back home'. I assume GSW is a gunshot wound. The way they spoke it seemed they where here for real trauma experience and not cash.

[JK8]

I have a doctor friend who has just finished their medical studies and who is busy doing their United States Medical Licensing Exams (US MLE) to work in the US. After my friend has worked in the US she wants to work here in South Africa.

What do foreign doctors need to do to be able to qualify to work locally? IE, all the papers and examinations and/or conditions required?

I think SA (Bara) is the best hospital to do your internship then she can go overseas...

[Syndyre]

I once heard two young (late 20's) doctors talking in Obs Cafe in Cape Town. They sounded like Irish accents to me. The one appeared to be telling the other one about working in SA. As far as I could tell one had been here a while the other just arrived. The 'veterans' comment was something like, 'You'll see more knifings and GSW's in one week here than in 5 years back home'. I assume GSW is a gunshot wound. The way they spoke it seemed they where here for real trauma experience and not cash.

They say its the only place you can get that kind of experience outside of a war zone.

[Captain Slog]

Here we go - another thread about how bad it is here.

[Syndyre]

Here we go - another thread about how bad it is here.

Whether you like it or not its one of the reasons people come here, to get experience with gunshots, stabbings etc.

[PeterCH]

I have a doctor friend who has just finished their medical studies and who is busy doing their United States Medical Licensing Exams (US MLE) to work in the US. After my friend has worked in the US she wants to work here in South Africa.

What do foreign doctors need to do to be able to qualify to work locally? IE, all the papers and examinations and/or conditions required?

USMLE is a long process. It's a set of 4 exams - the last being the local State board exam which many people don't know about. It seems questionable why someone planning to do residency in the
US would want to work in SA afterwards. I won't even mention that US doctors are the highest paid in the world and that being a doctor in the States
carries more prestige and respect than in SA. Still there are foreign doctors working in State hospitals either for free or for limited compensation, I know
of some US, Canadian and EU graduates who've worked for a while in trauma units in SA. However outside of trauma and possibly surgery they won't get much experience, as SA is way behind in the medicine which is practiced in
both private and public hospitals when compared to 1st world counterparts.
If you want to get your hands dirty doing pretty simple procedures which
may not be readily accesible to junior doctors in the First World SA is
pretty good I guess.
I can say however that US residency program directors put preference to US experience, they'll ask "Baragwanath what?"

I can only assume that this person will enter on a non-immigrant J1 Visa and will have to go back to where they came from after completing their residency or else do 2-3 years in a J1 Visa Waiver job.

As for how busy hospitals are, local hospitals eg Tygerberg and Groote Schuur get just as busy as Baragwanath, after all one person can only do so many thoracotomies per day.

[PeterCH]

I once heard two young (late 20's) doctors talking in Obs Cafe in Cape Town. They sounded like Irish accents to me.

South African doctors are working in Ireland for the cash. Local pay is quite pitiful. These guys had to pay for the priviledge of putting some stitches into
homeless people here.

[PeterCH]

I think SA (Bara) is the best hospital to do your internship then she can go overseas...

I would think that Groote Schuur would be the best hospital for that. It will offer less experience but the name itself has the most prestige as people
still recognise where the first heart transplant was plus many researchers and clinicians working at GSH are known overseas. I can always say that
one of the guys who taught me anaesthesiology was the guy who was present at the first heart transplant.