Many newly qualified doctors are taking part-time jobs to cope with debts, often driving Ubers or working in bars to supplement their income. This cycle of financial strain is particularly affecting students from lower-income backgrounds, highlighting a significant funding gap in medical education.
We are still down compared to even the pandemic in 2020, Dr Emma Runswick, a resident doctor in Greater Manchester and deputy chair of the BMA council, stated. The reward for working to get the country through Covid has been a real-terms pay cut, which was not the treatment expected during the days when people lined the streets to clap for health workers.