‘We must speak with one voice’: Pushback against abuse of IMGs

GPs, politicians and community members in New South Wales’ Hunter Valley have joined forces to condemn abuse directed towards incoming overseas doctors in the region.
 
A Facebook post from a clinic welcoming two new international medical graduates (IMGs) to the area this month prompted a spate of racist responses.
 
The clinic’s owner and practice manager says it is the first time he has seen such a reaction.
 
‘Obviously, we want the community to welcome doctors instead of raising some concerns which are completely racist and discriminatory,’ he told newsGP.
 
‘No doctor, no healthcare worker, or anyone in Australia should face such a thing.’
 
He said the new recruits have many years of medical training behind them and plans to talk to them about what has happened when they arrive to start their roles.
 
‘They’ve already done Australian exams or UK exams,’ he said. 
 
‘They’re specialists in their area, they’ve spent 30 years in education, they are not just coming after their graduation.
 
‘They have done 10 years, 15 years of post-graduate studies as well.
 
‘I’ve been assuring them that in Australia you will be respected a lot, [that] people on the street when they know that you’re a doctor, they will respect you. 
 
‘I have to reassure them that this is a one-off thing, not common. 
 
‘You may see it in the media, but don’t believe these things, stay positive.’
 
While he was reassured by the community response, he does have concerns the current political climate means people who previously kept their views to themselves have been emboldened to speak out.
 
‘When I saw … the response from the community, I was at least more comfortable that there are many more people who speak in favour of the doctors and against those people who are racist,’ he said.
 
‘The racists are condemned in the community generally. 
 
‘It is always a hidden thing, but it has come to the fore – that is what is worrisome.’ 
 
Associate Professor Ayman Shenouda, Chair of the RACGP’s National IMG Committee, said he is ‘deeply saddened by the continued reports of racist abuse directed towards doctors who have chosen to dedicate their lives to caring for Australian communities’.
 
‘There must be zero tolerance for racism in healthcare,’ he told newsGP.
 
‘Every doctor deserves to practise in an environment where they are respected, valued and safe, regardless of their country of birth, ethnicity, accent or where they obtained their medical degree.’
 
He said that for decades, IMGs have been an integral part of Australia’s healthcare system, caring for millions of patients, often in rural, regional, and remote communities where recruitment is challenging.


 Associate Professor Ayman Shenouda

‘Many communities have relied on their dedication, compassion, and professionalism to maintain access to essential healthcare,’ he said.
 
‘Behind every IMG is a remarkable story of sacrifice, resilience, and commitment.
 
‘They leave behind families, familiar cultures and established careers to embrace a new country, navigate complex registration pathways, and adapt to a different healthcare system all with one purpose: to care for patients and strengthen Australian healthcare.
 
‘Racism directed at any doctor is not just an attack on an individual; it undermines our entire healthcare system.’
 
Associate Professor Shenouda, who emigrated to Australia from Egypt as a young medical graduate, fears such abuse could discourage talented doctors from following in his footsteps, with serious implications for communities that depend heavily on IMGs.
 
‘The overwhelming majority of Australians value their doctors for the quality of care they provide, not where they come from,’ he said.
 
‘Every day, IMGs build trusted relationships with their patients through professionalism, kindness, and clinical excellence.
 
‘These relationships reflect the true values of Australian healthcare respect, inclusion, and compassion.’
 
RACGP NSW&ACT Chair Dr Rebekah Hoffman said she was taken aback when she learned of the abuse.
 
‘I really thought this form of racism was something that we’d left far in the past, back 20, 30 years,’ she told newsGP.
 
‘The fact that it’s happening now in 2026 is completely mindboggling for me.’
 
She also wants to reinforce how valued the doctors are ‘not only to the community that they’re working in, but also to the wider GP community’ – and that without overseas medical graduates, healthcare in many areas of Australia would almost cease to function.
 
‘Our international medical graduates are more than half of our GP workforce, and they’re a really important portion of our GP workforce,’ she said.
 
‘They’re holding up remote and regional care for really large cohorts of our patients, and they’re so incredibly valued by the communities that they work in.’
 
Condemnation also came from Federal Member for Hunter Dan Repacholi, who referenced the abuse this week in a post calling out racism in pamphlets recently distributed in his electorate for the far-right Australia First political party.
 
‘We have already seen local doctors abused and targeted with racist comments,’ he wrote.
 
‘Now cowards are spreading this hateful rubbish through our community.
 
‘It is not welcome in the Hunter. And it will not go unchallenged.
 
‘Our community is stronger than the hate and division these people are trying to spread.’

RACGP President Dr Michael Wright said ‘racism has no place in our health system’.
 
‘Our GPs are providing incredible services to patients all around the country, and we’ve been very fortunate to have so many doctors who’ve come from diverse backgrounds providing that care,’ he told newsGP.
 
‘We’ve worked hard with the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and through our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander faculty, embedding cultural safety.
 
‘GPs should not have to tolerate this, and we continue to work hard to push against racism in general practice and across the health system.’
 
It is a sentiment echoed by Associate Professor Shenouda.
 
‘As a profession, we must continue to stand together and speak with one voice,’ he said.
 
‘We must challenge racism whenever it occurs, support colleagues who experience discrimination, and foster workplaces and communities where diversity is celebrated rather than feared.
 
‘International medical graduates have made extraordinary contributions to Australian healthcare, and they will continue to do so for generations to come. They deserve our respect, our gratitude, and our unwavering support.
 
‘Together, we can ensure that Australia’s healthcare system remains one where every doctor feels safe, every patient feels cared for, and racism has no place.’
 
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