- Sometimes the search for better wages and working conditions cause people to leave their country of origin to work in another.
- Aspects such as guerrillas and armed conflicts also have an influence.
- According to a global analysis, India has the most serious problem of “brain drain” of doctors.
The common path for any doctor is to work in their own country of origin after completing their studies. Most follow this model, although there are also others who decide to change their residence to work in another country. This process is known as “brain drain” and it is a phenomenon that increasingly impacts more doctors.
In the first instance, it should be noted that there are many reasons that lead a person to make a decision of this type. Sometimes they are beneficial because what is aspired is to obtain a higher wages and better working conditions. Professional growth is one of the main points in favor.
On the other hand, there are also occasions when this decision is not generated by positive aspects. Guerrillas, armed conflicts or simply the lack of job opportunities cause many people to leave their country of origin in search of a new beginning.
Where is there the greatest “brain drain” of doctors?
Regarding this topic, Statista published an analysis based on statistics from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the World Health Organization (WHO). The first thing that was obtained was that India is the country with the largest number of doctors trained in their home nation but working abroad.
This creates a complicated situation because the India is also one of the nations with the lowest physician density on the planet. The problem is so big that even if all the expatriate doctors were to return home, it would not bolster the local workforce much.
According to the research, a total of nearly 75,000 Indian-trained doctors were working abroad. Almost two thirds have settled in the United States, while 19,000 do so in the United Kingdom.
Although the effects of this “brain drain” of physicians are significant for the country, the source of India’s low density of physicians runs deeper. In total, 7.3% of the doctors trained in their own nation have had to move to others to continue their professional work.
A problem of great proportions that extends throughout the planet
On the other hand, from the percentage point of view The country most affected by the “brain drain” of doctors is Romania. To date it has a population of around 19 million people but almost 22 thousand doctors work abroad. Returning all of them home would strengthen the home physician workforce by 37%.
In this vein, in Egypt and the Philippines this figure stands at almost 17% and almost 13%, respectively. This situation increased from the start of the pandemic and one of the reasons was to look for better work options.
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