The university’s current cap on domestic admissions is 282 students a year, a figure last increased in 2015, but this could change next year.
Otago Medical School acting dean Prof Tim Wilkinson said the university had told the Government it was willing to increase the cap to 300 places.
"An increase in the cap would be welcome, and is a matter that we would work on collaboratively with the Tertiary Education Commission and the new health sector agencies," he said.
Resident Doctors’ Association national secretary Deborah Powell said the healthcare sector was under ever-increasing demand and required at least another 200 medical graduates a year.
New technology made it easier to train medical students, and a four-year graduate entry programme could also be another solution, she said.
"It would be a shorter turnaround time in terms of producing doctors, which is helpful given we’ve got this crisis on our hands at the moment."
Prof Wilkinson said any increase depended on the Government granting approval and providing funding for the additional students.
"More generally, were the cap to be increased, co-ordination would be required down the track to ensure an adequacy of clinical access for the additional students," he said.
However, this was not expected to be a major issue with an increase of 18 places.
While the proposed increase was initially intended to take effect from 2024, it could be activated next year, he said.
The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners president Dr Samantha Murton said any increase was a good step.
"We are quite behind the eight ball far as our numbers of medical students per head of population currently, so it does need to change," Dr Murton said.
While the increase would need to be staged, it needed to start now, she said.
Association of Salaried Medical Specialists executive director Sarah Dalton also said the proposed increase would be welcome.
"We have significant workforce shortages across all health clinical areas, and we also have a very heavy reliance on overseas-trained doctors.
Because of "massive" international demand, it could not be assumed New Zealand would keep attracting these doctors.
"We absolutely need to make a careful investment in growing more of our own doctors."
National Party MP Dr Shane Reti said there was a national shortage of about 1500 general practitioners and a long-term solution was to train more.
