#NHSLiveableBursary

The final-year medical students who say government funding is not enough to live on

By Anna Wise

Final-year medics say insufficient government funding is leaving some students to live in poverty.

The NHS Liveable Bursary campaign is calling for the government to address the drop in financial support for student doctors and dentists entering their penultimate and final years of study.

The campaign was organised by medical students and has gained the support of prominent doctors-led organisation, the Doctors’ Association UK (DAUK).

Anna Sigston, 22, is the medical student lead for the DAUK putting her full weight behind the campaign alongside her full-time studies in the North West of England.

“This is an issue that’s been ongoing for years, but I think people are more willing to listen now because of the rising cost of living,” Anna said.

Anna Sigston says medical students are having to use food banks

The DAUK say that student doctors are only fully funded for their first four years of study, after which they experience a substantial drop in funding.

The group calculated that medics living outside of London are permitted to a maximum of £6,458 to live on annually in their fifth and sixth years.

This cost incorporates a reduced student maintenance loan, which the DAUK says is a maximum of £1,975, and the NHS Bursary, which gives out a maximum of £2,643 as a means-tested grant, £1,000 non-means-tested grant, plus £84 for ten extra weeks of study.

Whereas in years one to four, students can access a maintenance loan for living costs from Student Finance England (SFE) of up to £9,706 for those living outside of London.

Medics also point out that they face a reduction in money at time when they are expected to complete unpaid clinical placements alongside studies.

Anna said: “That funding is just not feasible. People cannot live off £6,000 a year, that doesn’t cover rent in most places.

“A lot of us have to pay for transportation to get to our placements, so we’re burning through petrol of we’re getting two to three hours on a train or tram.

“Medical school is not cheap and we are working an average of 40 hours a week, bearing in mind we are not paid.”

Anna Sigston, medical student lead for DAUK. Image credit: Anna Sigston

I'm a final year medical student and I can't afford any of my rent or bills this Summer. My calculations tell me that I'll be minimum £3.5k in the hole before my first FY1 paycheque comes in at the end of August. #LiveableNHSBursary pic.twitter.com/bGwEoumqJg
— hannah 🍌🇺🇦 #LiveableNHSBursary (@hannahmillana) May 26, 2022

Students say they are having to work paid shifts alongside unpaid placements to pay rent or afford to live.

For some, this has led to spiralling debts to fund expenses, worsening health or exhaustion, or forced them to drop out of medical school altogether.

Penelope Sucharitkul, a medical student and member of the DAUK, said: “I'm from a single parent background, I came straight from school and now in my fifth year of university, next year my NHS Bursary and maximum student loan adds up to £5,400, not even enough to cover my rent next year of £5,460.

“I have two jobs in anticipation of this drop in funding and also did two paid internships last year.

“It’s exhausting always having to worry about cutting costs, especially when your peers are able to study and enjoy time at home."

#NHSLiveableBursary has trended on Twitter and led other students to come forward and vocalise the financial stress they face.

A fifth-year medical student, Hannah, has raised over £1,000 through the platform GoFundMe to cover her rent and bills payments after posting about her situation on Twitter.

She said the NHS Bursary does not sufficiently support students who cannot rely on their family to pay final year expenses, and the shortfall in funding left her with no alternative.

The University of Manchester estimated the cost of living for students in 2021/22 was £10,330 on average for the year, presuming they are in self-catered accommodation and taking into account expenditure such as transport, clothes, books and phone bills.

That leaves final-year students with at least a £4,000 shortfall in spending, according to the DAUK’s calculations of the maximum funding available.

The campaigners highlight the discrepancy in funding for medical students compared to other healthcare courses like nursing, midwifery, or physiotherapy.

They say these students, unlike medical and dental students, have access to full maintenance loans for the duration of their degree, as well as a £5,000 non-means-tested grant through a different NHS fund, the NHS Learning Support Fund.

Why are we asking for the £5000 learning support fund? Because we need change now. We need change that is feasible. Our goal is clear and purposeful - we know our ability to strike as medical students is non existent. Our aims need to be measured. #LiveableNHSBursary. pic.twitter.com/q13daKeAx2
— Eilidh Garrett #LiveableNHSBursary (@thegradmedic) May 30, 2022

Image credit: National Cancer Institute (Unsplash)

Anna suggests there’s an old-school opinion of doctors embedded in British society that assumes the profession is "passed down" through the generations, and could explain why the funding system is different for medics.

“All we are asking is to be treated the same as every other healthcare professional,” she said.

“I don’t understand how hard it could be to give access to medical and dental students the funds that so many other healthcare students have access to.”

Although Anna emphasised it’s not in the hands of students to change the system, it’s down to the government.

Indeed, the campaigners in tandem with the DAUK organised a virtual MP briefing in May to describe the aims of the campaign and encourage MPs and Peers to enact change.

#LiveableNHSBursary for Medical Students MP Briefing, held on 26 May 2022. Image credit: DAUK

Daisy Cooper, Liberal Democrat MP. Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

Daisy Cooper, a Liberal Democrat MP and health and social care spokesperson for the party, attended the briefing and said the government needs to address the issue immediately.

Cooper said: “With more than 110,000 vacancies in the NHS, a shortage of GPs and regular reports of staff considering quitting or retiring early, the government should be doing everything it can to encourage students to study medicine and complete their training.

“But the Government is leaving trainee doctors from modest means in dire straits, as they face a cliff edge of funding in their final years.”

She said students have told her they cannot work safely in hospitals because of the stress of working multiple jobs while studying, something which will have a knock-on effect on patient safety.

She added: “This Conservative Government is failing to tackle the crises in our health services and is failing to support the next generation of doctors that we so desperately need.

“They need to get a handle on this now."

The NHS Liveable Bursary campaign also encourages people to write to their local MP to ask for their support and further put pressure on the government to make changes.

Anna warned: “I think unless change is enacted, we’re going to see a huge attrition rate within the NHS."

On why medics are getting behind the campaign, Anna said that many doctors love the work they do and don’t want to see passionate students having to drop out because they can’t afford to graduate.

“I fight for this because I love medicine,” Anna concluded.

“I am so proud to be a medical student in the NHS, I think it is a privilege and a real joy.”

In response to the campaign, a Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "We are committed to supporting medical students in England across all years of study and are keeping funding arrangements for all healthcare students under review.

“The department recognises that maintenance loan levels are higher under the SFE loans system for years one to four, than the NHS Bursary for year five students.

“However, it is important to consider that student loans are required to be repaid. The NHS bursary is non-repayable.”