The health secretary, Patricia Hewitt, has announced a review of the government's Modernising Medical Careers programme after the debacle over this year's appointments system.
The chaos created by the computer problems with the medical training application service (MTAS) had threatened to scupper the government's plans for a major shake-up of medical training. Remedy UK, the organisation leading protests against MTAS, had at times called for the whole Modernising Medical Careers (MMC) programme to be called to a halt. However, the review group looking at the MTAS situation said it did not think that the programme itself is at fault (bmj.com, 14 Apr, “Junior doctors' interview process is revised in compromise deal,” doi: 10.1136/bmj.39177.524850.4E).
In an announcement in the House of Commons on Monday Ms Hewitt apologised for the distress caused to those applying for posts under MTAS. She then went on to announce the latest review, to be headed by John Tooke, who is dean of the Peninsula Medical School, chairman of the Council of Heads of Medical Schools, and chairman of the UK Health Education Advisory Committee.
“It was important to find a sensible way forward for 2007,” said Ms Hewitt, thanking Neil Douglas for his work so far on the MTAS review panel. “But we now need to look forward to 2008.
“The review will clarify and strengthen the principles underlying MMC to ensure that they have engagement and support from the medical profession and its leaders. I want the review particularly to look at how the processes involved in delivering Modernising Medical Careers meet the needs of the service, employers, and doctors in training.”
In response to the announcement, Jo Hilborne, who chairs the BMA's Junior Doctors Committee, said: “The government's handling of training reforms has been appalling. The BMA has been warning for years that Modernising Medical Careers was being rushed in too quickly, to the detriment of patient care. It's depressing that it's taken a disaster on this scale for them to listen.
“We hope that doctors will be able to engage fully with this review and welcome the fact that it is to be independent. However, we need more than this—we need urgent action now. There are currently 34 250 doctors applying for just 18 500 training posts in the UK. We need solutions that ensure that no doctor in training loses out on a career as a result of government mistakes or poor workforce planning.”
Matt Jameson-Evans, from Remedy UK, was keen that the review of Modernising Medical Careers should include representation from junior doctors. “Remedy has a part to play in this, shoulder to shoulder with the BMA,” he said.
But the latest announcement does not affect the situation this year, he said. “It doesn't affect the legal action we are taking,” he said. “It doesn't resolve the problems that we have currently got.”
(See Features, doi: 10.1136/bmj.39188.477002.59.)