In late
June, the U.K. decided to leave the European Union (EU) based on the belief
that it would gain more autonomy and strengthen its economy. But how will the
newly independent nation ensure that its foreign-born physicians — who make up
a quarter of the total — don't depart to their homes in the EU?
One of
the main reasons for the U.K.'s "Brexit" was a perceived excess of
immigrants, according to Forbes. Consequently, it's possible that the National
Health Service (NHS) will face a difficult time recruiting physicians from EU
countries — and retaining the ones who wanted to work in a U.K. that belonged
to the Union.
NHS
leadership has been outspoken in their gratitude for immigrant staff from EU
countries. The British Medical Journal reports Jeremy Hunt, England's health
secretary, described staff from other EU countries as “a crucial part of our
NHS,” while other members of the service paid tribute in a #LoveOurEUStaff
social media campaign.
Statistics
from the Health and Social Care Information Centre show that 26 percent of all
NHS physicians aren't from the U.K. But, according to some experts, that
doesn't mean Brexit spells disaster for U.K. hospitals.
Dr.
Sophie Chung is no stranger to the concept of going abroad for health care. As
the CEO and founder of Junomedical — a medical tourism company that works with
carefully chosen hospitals experienced with international patients — she
doesn't think Brexit will have an immediate and significant impact on access to
care in the U.K.
But other
factors might.
"If
the strong voices calling for stricter immigration laws and less immigrants in
the country who were pro-Brexit get their way, influx of a highly qualified
work force supporting the U.K. health care system might suffer," she told
HCB News, adding that U.K. citizens have already taken up the trend of
traveling for the best care possible.
For those
patients, Junomedical provides personalized treatment plans and an overview of
how much they should expect everything to cost.
A 2015
market analysis from Transparency Market Research said the global medical
tourism industry was worth $10.5 billion in 2012, and is expected to reach
$32.5 billion by 2019. That report cites "cultural similarities and
geographic proximity" as key factors that contribute to a medical
destination.
"If
access to health care becomes even more constrained and burdensome, I expect to
see even more patients seeking affordable, high-quality health care
abroad," said Chung.
There are
no easy answers. If Brexit does exacerbate care constraints in the U.K.,
patients will have to weigh their options against the pound's unfavorable
exchange rate and new visa requirements.
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