Experience of clinical supervisors of international medical graduates in an Australian district hospital

Abstract

Objective. Herein we record the experience of clinical supervisors of international medical graduates (IMGs) working as junior staff in a district hospital by examining supervisor perspectives on IMG performance, the factors affecting their performance and the requirements of supervision under these circumstances. Methods. The present study had an open-ended exploratory qualitative design. Thirteen 13 open-ended, in-depth interviews were undertaken with supervisors of IMGs employed in a public district hospital in Queensland, Australia. Results. The supervisors reported that, although performance was an individual and variable characteristic, IMGs tended to perform less well than Australian graduates and required more intensive supervision. Factors that affected performance were motivation and experience, and specifically lack of familiarity with the Australian healthcare system, lack of recent of practice, education, language, communication and cultural factors. English language proficiency was regarded as crucial to performance. Conclusions. The additional work required to supervise IMGs in order to enable them to perform at a satisfactory level and successfully integrate into the Australian healthcare system needs to be recognised and resourced. Assistance with attaining proficiency in English and with communication skills over and above the standard required to pass the International English Language Testing System examination should be seriously considered as a means of improving performance.