Prejudice against doctors and students from ethnic minorities

Prejudice against doctors and students from ethnic minorities SIR,-As Dr Richard Smith states (7 February, p 328), doctors trained overseas have been dis- advantaged in competing for jobs in the National Health Service.The study by Smith in 1980 proved this beyond any measure of doubt.'The profession's concern about the competence of many such doctors led to the recommendations of the Merrison Committee, in 1975, which required a substantial proportion ofoverseas doctors to take the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board examination (PLAB), a test of professional com- petence at the level of senior house officer and of formal and colloquial English.