Opinion

Magee medical school opening is good news

At an increasingly challenging time for our health service, the opening of a new School of Medicine in Derry is particularly welcome.

Based at Ulster University’s Magee Campus, the new intake of 70 students represents an investment not just in health, but in the economic development of the north west.

While Queen’s University has an excellent reputation in producing 270 medical graduates annually, a report commissioned by Stormont’s Department of Health has forecast that we need at least 100 more new doctors every year to meet current health demands.

Since the report was written prior to the outbreak of Covid, it is likely that the demand for qualified clinicians is now even greater.

While it might have been expected that the increased demand would have led to an expansion of Queen’s School of Medicine, the location of the new course in Derry represents a significant political and economic departure.

Although a long-term business case for the new medical school has yet to be completed, funding for the first six years will allow Ulster University and the Department of Health time to work out a sustainable funding model.

Investment in the university will contribute to the local economy in the context of the £250 million Derry and Strabane Region City Deal.

It will also make a strong case for Magee’s further expansion in terms of educational provision and regional economic investment.

As well as impacting on the health service and the north west economy, the new course is also highly innovative in educational terms.

It is a post-graduate course for those who already hold a degree in a variety of subjects, ranging from the medical-related to non-medical subjects.

This represents a refreshing educational departure in that the new students will have gained significant knowledge, both inside and outside university, before beginning their medical studies.

They will therefore bring a welcome level of maturity and real-life experience to their new profession.

While there is no guarantee that all our newly qualified doctors will remain here, it is now up to the Department of Health to begin appropriate human resource planning to fill the current gaps in its provision of GPs, non-consultant doctors and consultants.

The new medical intake at Magee allows that process to begin and that makes the new course good news for everyone here.