Saskatchewan is being accused of luring doctors away from South Africa, and indirectly harming the medical system in that country.

There are nearly 300 doctors from South Africa currently working in Saskatchewan. The South African government says its own medical system is suffering, because doctors are coming to Canada.

Lee Teperman of the Society of Rural Physicians of Canada says recruiting foreign doctors is not the way to solve Canada's problems.

"I don't want to discourage people who do want to come over here," said Teperman, "but as a government that's responsible for providing a medical system, looking for and depending on foreign medical graduates is not the way to do it."

Teperman says the federal government must come up with a national plan to help train and retain rural health-care workers in this country. He also says that South Africa would keep more of its own doctors if it improved its own health-care system.