LAUSR

In this issue of Medical Education, Al-Haddad, Jamieson and Germeni present the results of a meta-ethnography that enabled them to discuss the experiences and difficulties encountered by International Medical Graduates (IMGs). They systematically identified five commonalities among IMGs, providing a holistic conceptual understanding of this important population and its interactions in the clinical environment. This thoughtful article enlightens us about the thinking undertaken by IMGs, offering ways to help reach targets set by the General Medical Council (GMC): ‘elimination of disproportionate [patient] complaints and [IMG] training inequalities’. In this commentary, we would like to further that discussion by juxtaposing a variety of stakeholder perspectives with the IMGs' personal experiences as outlined in the article and the needs of global health workforces, patients and institutions. In doing so, we aim to continue contemplation of how IMGs can best be incorporated into health systems in a manner that enables them and their patients to thrive. Regardless of where one trains in relation to where one practices, ensuring safe and high-quality patient care has always been the common goal for delivering medical services and medical education. It is noteworthy in this regard that Al-Haddad et al.'s finding of dissonance between IMGs and the host country to which they moved included dimensions of language, culture, education and belonging but did not reflect any indication that IMGs' goals for high-quality patient care were fundamentally different than those of their host country. If we can presume that commonality, despite whatever differences might exist between IMGs and those trained domestically, the question becomes what roles and activities might various stakeholders play to overcome the disproportionate rate of complaints alluded to above? DOI: 10.1111/medu.14742