Abstract
An Australian wide shortage of doctors has led to an increased reliance on International Medical Graduate (IMG) recruitment. However, there is very little research regarding the acculturation of IMGs as they reside in the rural Tasmanian context. This paper explores from the perspective of IMG informants, the experiences and challenges of IMGs living and working in rural and remote Tasmania and how it informs the acculturation process. It identifies the barriers facing IMGs as they work and live in Tasmanian communities. It is part of a larger doctoral study looking at IMGs in Tasmania. The study adopted a qualitative research approach. Twenty-three semi-structured interviews were conducted with IMG informants in the North, South and North West of Tasmania. Informants were recruited through purposive snowball sampling. The findings indicate that Tasmanian based IMGs encounter both professional and social challenges. These challenges include vulnerability due to fear of job security, and loss of status, discrimination and communication challenges within the workplace. Additional challenges include spouse employment, obtaining high quality academic access for children, and cultural and religious connectivity. These challenges influence IMGs and their families to stay or relocate. In addition, a number of identified needs have been identified to improve retention of IMGs within Tasmania. The study adds to existing knowledge and identifies three factors which further determine the retention of IMGs. These factors include, job opportunities, vocational training and greater commensurate support provided to IMGs and their families.
Highlights
It must be noted; two of the twenty-three informant’s interviewed were International Medical Graduate (IMG), yet were working as an organisational leader and a director of clinical training. These two informants were included in the sample, as they both had lived in Tasmania for a significant amount of time (
Dr Patel, was implicated with 87 deaths occurring at the Bundaberg Base Hospital in Queensland between 2003 and 2005. [40,91,92,93] These challenges have restricted migrant acceptance within communities, where antagonism, discrimination and rejection produce poor long term acculturation, quality of life and poorer health of migrants. [19,27,33,39,40,44,94,95] In this intolerance has been observed toward IMGs from both the public and within the medical profession. [39,44] For example, a lack of assistance has been observed from the medical profession, who at times has been divided by the employment of large numbers of IMGs to abate the rural doctor shortage in Australia. [27,31,51] a number of contrasting and very positive experiences have been voiced by IMGs in Australia. [30,50]
This study has examined the views, knowledge and understandings of twenty-three IMG informants in Tasmania who assist and support IMGs, a heterogeneous group of doctors, which encompasses a large number of nationalities, cultures and religious backgrounds
Summary
[4,12] very little research within Australian or internationally has been undertaken to examine the quality of life and social needs of IMGs and their families as crucial factors impacting the integration and acculturation as IMGs reside in rural and remote areas. A review of the literature revealed there were twenty-one articles which were in some capacity aimed at investigating and understanding the professional experiences, social support, acculturation and retention of IMGs. Ten were international studies while the remaining 11 studies were conducted in Australia. A study conducted by Atri, et al [16], examined the effects of social support and acculturation of IMGs on their mental health and wellbeing and their capacity to be professionally integrated within the work setting in the US. Two studies, were based in Canada [15,17], three were conducted in New Zealand [14,18,19], one study was UK based [20], while the remaining three were in the US, [16,21,22] and lastly, one study was based in the US, but examined former Soviet Union doctors working in the USA, Israel and Canada. [23]
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