Doctors accuse gov't of easing rules for foreign-trained medical graduates

Taipei, Dec. 5 (CNA) Groups of medical practitioners on Thursday voiced opposition to recent amendments to the Enforcement Rules of the Physicians Act, saying it would make it too easy for foreign-trained medical and dental graduates to take the Physician Examination in Taiwan.

The amendments "quietly" loosened the verification standards for degrees obtained by "BoBo Doctors" (波波醫師), said Huang Ying-chi (黃映綺), president of the Taiwan General Dental Practitioners Association (TGDPA), at a press conference.

The amendments took effect on Nov. 25 after a protest was held the day before, calling for stricter regulations on medical practitioners trained abroad.

The amendments "will lead to more substandard 'BoBo Doctors' who fail to meet the original qualification criteria" coming back to Taiwan to practice, Huang argued.

"BoBo Doctors," and "BoBo Dentists" (波波牙醫), have recently become buzzwords in Taiwan as there is a growing debate over issues including professional standards, licensing and internship quotas for medical professionals educated in Taiwan and abroad.

The two terms refer to Taiwanese medical practitioners who obtained their medical or dental degrees abroad, particularly in some eastern European countries, including Poland ("Bo" is the Mandarin phonetic abbreviation for Poland).

One of the reasons for public concern over the professional standards of "Bobo Doctors" stems from a fatal medical incident last year.

During a hysteroscopy, a "Bobo Doctor" surnamed Liu (劉) accidentally pierced a patient's uterus and right iliac artery with surgical instruments, causing severe bleeding that led to the patient's death.

Liu, who was sentenced to seven months in prison suspended for five years after being found guilty of negligent homicide, had studied in Poland.

At Thursday's press conference, held by TGDPA and other groups of doctors, dentists and Chinese medical practitioners, Huang zoned in one aspect of the amendments, which she said stipulates that Taiwan would now recognize any degree approved by a foreign organization, like an education authority.

She noted that this would eliminate any vetting process done on the Taiwan side before graduates prepare to take the Physician Examination. After passing the test, doctors can practice in the country.

The amendments "completely delegate the authority of reviewing and verifying the educational quality of foreign degrees to external entities," Huang added, calling for the amendments to be withdrawn and revised.

In contrast, under the previous "principles for recognizing medical degrees from foreign universities or institutions," which took effect in 2017, foreign educational institutions had to be on a specific Ministry of Education (MOE) list for their degrees to be acknowledged as equivalent to those from domestic institutions, Huang noted.

In response, Liu Yu-ching (劉玉菁), deputy head of the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Department of Medical Affairs, contradicted what Huang said, noting that the ministry "did not introduce any new regulations" in this section of the amendments but instead fully listed the MOE's existing regulations about the recognition of degrees from overseas institutions.

Under the MOE's regulations, individuals who graduated abroad must have done so from a school included in its reference list for their degrees to be acknowledged as equivalent to those from domestic institutions, Liu said.

However, Liu added that a provision allows degrees from schools not on the list to be recognized if they are "accredited by the government authority responsible for such educational institutions or by the professional accreditation agency for education in the country where it is located."