- Currently, it is estimated that there is a deficit of at least 77,000 specialists in Mexico.
- According to official statistics published by the CIFRHS, ENARM 2023 will distribute a total of 18,529 places.
- The head of the Ministry of Health, Jorge Alcocer, said that his goal is to offer 27,449 places in 2030.
A frequent doubt among applicants for the National Examination of Aspirants to Medical Residencies (ENARM) 2023 is about the number of places granted. In each edition the figure is modified and although in some the modification is minimal, there are also others in which the available spaces have been doubled.
There are not enough spaces to accommodate all those interested in the hospitals
This information is important because it allows you to have a general idea about the probability of obtaining a place. The problem is that while the number of applicants has increased exponentially over the last few decades, the number of places for residents has not had the same change.
In this regard, the biggest change occurred in 2020 when the places were doubled for the first time. With this, we went from 9,000 places to 18,000. It is the biggest change but even then it is not enough to ensure that the majority of applicants can continue their preparation within hospitals.
What happened at ENARM 2023?
With this in mind, the Interinstitutional Commission for the Training of Human Resources for Health (CIFRHS) published official information on the number of places that will be offered at ENARM 2023.
Within the document it is mentioned that for the Mexican category there are 18,117 spaces available. Furthermore the National Council of Humanities, Sciences and Technologies (Conahcyt) will distribute 50 scholarships to study the specialty in Cuba. And finally, 362 places will be offered for foreign doctors.
In sum, a final figure of 18,529 places is obtained to begin medical residency. For its part, when taking into account that there were 47,246 applicants, only 39.21 percent will have the possibility of being a specialist this year.
Now, it is necessary to remember that 18,147 places were distributed in ENARM 2022, which means that this year there was an increase of 382 places.
On the other hand, the main drawback is that the increase is insufficient for the number of applicants reported in each edition. In the end everything has been generated because there are not enough hospitals in the national territory.
Finally, it cannot be overlooked that the holder of the Secretary of Health (SSa), Jorge Alcocer, said that his goal is to offer 27,449 places in 2030.
Also read:
Jorge Alcocer promises 27 thousand places for ENARM… in 2030
ENARM 2023: This is the only medical specialty without places available
ENARM 2023: Number of places that each medical specialty will offer