New medicine course aims to boost GP numbers

The first year's intake of 54 graduate students are set to begin their studies in Portsmouth

The first students have begun a new university medical training course in a bid to help ease the shortage of doctors.

The branch of Kings College's medical school has been opened at the University of Portsmouth with the first intake of 54 students studying medicine.

Portsmouth's vice-chancellor, Professor Graham Galbraith, said the course would be training "urgently needed" doctors.

Portsmouth is one of the country's worst regions for the number of GPs with fewer than 40 per 100,000 patients.

The so-called branch model medical course will see graduate students study medicine in Portsmouth, using donated funded places from King's College London.

The University of Portsmouth aims to establish its own independent medical school by September 2028.

Graduates will learn face-to-face with patients and medics from across the region and will be awarded a King's Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery degree (MBBS).

Nationally, NHS England has agreed to fund an extra 350 medical students from next year, with plans to increase that further, particularly in regions with the worst shortages.

Prof Galbraith said: "We are pleased to be supporting efforts to provide more doctors, particularly in our region where we do not have a sufficient number of GPs.

"It is our ambition that this new medical degree programme in a new state of the art purpose-built facility will contribute to alleviating the local shortfall in medics and improve access to healthcare for local people."

Kareena Panesar is one of the initial intake of graduate students

Those selected have already completed degrees in subjects including Biochemistry, Pharmacy and Molecular Genetics, consequently the course only lasts four years, as opposed to five if they had come straight from A Levels.

Kareena Panesar, 22, said: "I'm enjoying being in Portsmouth and exploring the city - this is our home for the next four years.

"The Queen Alexandra Hospital is massive and I'm just excited to see how each department works and how we can slot in in the future."

Professor Shitij Kapur, vice-chancellor of King's College London, said universities played a "critical role" in addressing the problems of the NHS.

"The impact of this partnership will be felt not only in the Portsmouth area but far beyond as we prepare the next generation of medical professionals," he added.

Imperial College is due to open a branch medical degree course at Cumbria University next year.

Meanwhile the University of Lincoln established Lincoln Medical School in partnership with the University of Nottingham in 2018.

Its first students graduated in July.