Army doctors pay concerns

Army doctors’ pay needs to be brought in line with civilian staff if the “crisis” in recruitment and retention is to be addressed, according to the British Medical Association.

It says that the 3.225 per cent pay increase announced by the Armed Forces Pay Review Body fails to address an ongoing problem.

Dr Brendan McKeating, chairman of the BMA armed forces committee said: “Armed forces doctors are becoming disadvantaged compared to civilian colleagues as they are working longer hours for less pay. These doctors are required to maintain specialised military skills in addition to the normal skills required by their civilian counterparts and it is high time that they were rewarded rather than penalised for serving Queen and Country.”

The BMA says its research suggests that nearly half of the doctors within the forces expect to leave the military within five years.