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‘Dr Finlay’ image of rural GP hampers recruitment

An outdated perception of the life of a rural GP is discouraging doctors from applying for jobs in Scotland, according to medical recruiters.

Jo Hood, head of UK recruitment for the Edinburgh-based consultancy Head Medical, told the Scotsman newspaper that many people still had the image of ‘Dr Finlay’s Casebook’ in mind when thinking about a doctor’s role in Scotland.

The TV drama series, which was broadcast between 1962-1971, was based on a novella called ‘Country Doctor’.

‘The idea that the modern country doctor in Scotland is anything like Dr Finlay’s Casebook is still a bit of a problem,’ said Ms Hood.

Head Medical recently launched a new department to help English, Scandinavian, Dutch and other European doctors relocate to Scotland.

Ms Hood’s comments come as the recruitment crisis in Scotland appears to be intensifying.

Figures suggest that practices are being forced to stop taking on new patients across Scotland due to the GP shortage, including around a third of practices in Lothian.