There is a need for additional intern places in 2026 to help meet future medical workforce needs, HSE National Doctors Training and Planning (NDTP) has informed the Department of Health (DoH).
The medical intern board (MIB) discussed the issue at a meeting in February. The meeting heard that the NDTP had “already communicated” to the Department that an increase in posts would be consistent with workforce planning.
The MIB is responsible for the governance and strategic direction of the intern year on a national basis. Meeting minutes referenced a request from the Intern Network Executive (INE) to consider the need for more intern posts. The MIB noted the projections in the 2021 Crowe report, which estimated the number of intern posts required for workforce planning. The meeting heard that the Department would be “aware of” this data.
In addition, Prof Paula O’Leary, Irish Medical Schools Council, stated that additional medical school places funded by the Exchequer would result in more graduates from 2027.
“The board discussed the issue and confirmed support for increased training capacity in 2026,” according to the minutes, which were obtained from the HSE under Freedom of Information law.
The development of a business case by medical schools, the INE, and the NDTP to “progress and inform” a request for an uplift in intern posts was discussed.
Prof John Cooke, National Clinical Lead, NDTP, advised that while it was possible to continue to increase intern posts incrementally, larger increases to meet longer-term workforce demands would need to be addressed by the planned new intern governance body.
The board agreed that the matter “should be progressed as a matter of urgency to ensure that an uplift could be requested of the DoH ahead of 2026”.
A HSE spokesperson told the Medical Independent: “The HSE is currently engaged in the annual estimates process with the Department of Health to determine intern numbers and associated funding for 2026. As this process is ongoing, no final decisions or figures are available at this stage.”
There were 879 intern posts available for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 training years. All posts were filled through the national matching process, according to the HSE.
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