Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi has shot down suggestions that private institutions be allowed to train doctors to alleviate a shortage of physicians, saying this would result in the exclusion of students from poor communities. [s]Business Day[/s] reports that he was responding to a question at a pre-election debate in Johannesburg. SA suffers from a chronic shortage of doctors, particularly in rural areas. It has 5.5 doctors per 10,000 lives, which is the lowest of the Brics countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and SA). The report says the government has opposed licensing private institutions to train doctors despite the fact that the country’s medical schools produce only 1,200 doctors a year.
[link url=http://www.bdlive.co.za/national/health/2014/04/14/doctor-plan-may-exclude-poor-from-training]Full Business Day report[/link]