Worrying about the migration of Turkish doctors abroad

According to the international group Tasnim news agency, Turkey’s economic crisis in 3 Last year, it caused an increase in immigration in this country. With the difference that now, the migration of doctors from Turkey to European countries includes a wide range of reasons, of which trying to get a higher salary is only one of them.

The latest report “Turkish Doctors Union” (TTB) has revealed the alarming dimensions of this phenomenon regarding the demand for immigration among the country’s doctors.

Experts believe that if the situation continues like this, in the short term, Turkey’s healthcare system will face a serious crisis in terms of providing doctors and medical staff. Because within a period of 11 years, the action of Turkish doctors to migrate abroad has increased more than 65 times.

Both 2021 and 2022 were very bad years for the Turkish economy. Especially in 2022, inflation hit a record and many people in this country faced a livelihood crisis, and most economic experts believed that until the 2023 elections and the political tension in the country are not resolved, the Turkish market will not see a good day. Sight. But now 6 months have passed since the election and Turkey’s economy has been getting worse and worse.

In 2023, many Turkish economic and labor groups have practically reached a dead end. . But now it has become clear that almost no group is as worried about the state of the country as the doctors.

The official statistics of the Turkish Medical Association showed that in the first 11 months of 2023, 2 thousand And 785 Turkish doctors are registered in the system of obtaining a “certificate of good conduct” and are looking to immigrate. will That is, in addition to proving the validity and scientific value of the medical university degree, you must also provide a document that shows that you have not been involved in conflicts, negligence, carelessness, and disregarding the rules of the hospital environment in the medical unit of your workplace.

If you don’t provide this document, even with a graduation certificate from the best medical school, you will still miss a job. Now it may be said, the government can not provide this certificate to prevent the immigration of doctors.

But in practice it is not so. Why? Because, first of all, the medical association is an independent and non-governmental institution and association, and based on adherence to scientific and professional principles, it fulfills the request of immigrant doctors. Even if the union does not want to give a certificate, it can be obtained by a court order. Secondly, the doctor cannot be kept in the treatment unit by force, and if he wants to leave, he will find a way!

The problem is that in addition to general doctors and specialists, nurses , medical and paramedical personnel are often looking to emigrate, and Turkey’s health system is facing an unprecedented situation.

Emergence of crisis in an 11-year period

The official graph of the Turkish Medical Association shows that in 2012, only 36 doctors This country was looking for immigration. In the following year, this number reached 66 people, and in 2016, it reached 169 people. But the upward trend continued and in 2021, it suddenly approached the number of one thousand people.

The widespread spread of the Corona virus has put the health system of all countries in the world against a difficult and complex test. The contract and the promise of big salaries made nearly 2 thousand Turkish doctors think about leaving in 2022. This wave did not stop again and in 2023 it has reached 2,300 people.

Is it Is it just money?

In 2022, a controversial comment by Erdoğan about Turkish doctors caused many negative reactions.

The story was that a reporter asked about the union demands of doctors and their protests and pointed out that if these demands are not answered, many of them may leave the country. What is the government’s plan to persuade doctors? Erdoğan replied calmly: “If they want to leave, we will not stand in their way.” Anyone who wants to can leave”.

Erdogan’s words were considered as one of the factors that provoked and increased the desire to emigrate. Of course, Turkey’s health minister, Fakhruddin Kujai, a doctor, did not do anything special to appease his colleagues, and Erdogan’s government showed that it does not have a good relationship with the community doctor.

Therefore Government officials’ approach to doctors is looking down on them, ignoring professional and scientific demands, is one of the important reasons for immigration.

The issue of health and treatment in Turkey, following many other issues in this country, is a very political and partisan issue! In order to get high votes, the Justice and Development Party has built many clinics that have a severe shortage of doctors and treatment staff, and these clinics have low financial credits. As a result of the crowding of patients, the small number of doctors, the number of shifts and the short time allocation of three to four minutes for the examination, the doctors are extremely tired and worn out.

while facing these hard conditions, low wages and A littleis given to doctors, and any doctor who is able to open an office is not willing to work in these government clinics.

Experts and analysts Turkey believes that if we only focus on the salary and welfare and living conditions of doctors in explaining the reasons for the migration of doctors and medical staff in this country, we have gone astray and we are neglecting to understand some very important issues and factors.

For example, violence in the therapeutic environment, is a very important phenomenon that many Turkish doctors and medical staff They have been dealing with it for years and this phenomenon has taken many victims. Image/1402/09/11/1402091113041377528888094.jpg”/>

Violence in the therapeutic environment is a well-established and familiar term in Turkish media and news literature. This term is used to describe the harsh and violent behavior of patients’ companions with the medical staff. In most provinces of Turkey, a violent physical attack on a doctor by a patient’s companion and family members is a pervasive immorality, and these conflicts have so far claimed many victims and dozens of demonstrations and sit-ins have been held against it.

Based on false beliefs and unfounded notions, many patients’ companions attack the doctor, either by claiming that he did not take care of the sick patient, or by claiming medical malpractice leading to death, and so far several doctors And the medical staff was seriously injured and even two people were killed.

However, the government is not willing to speak and take a position on this issue! Because any kind of support for doctors and expressing criticism against the people may lower the votes of the ruling party. Normal has a shortage of doctors!

Euronews Turkish report shows that Turkey has the lowest number of doctors among European countries. While the average number of doctors in the European Union is 504 per 100,000 people, this number reaches 281 in Turkey.

Statistics show that in the last few years Most of the Turkish doctors who left their homeland and went abroad for medicine and life have settled in Germany. Italy, France and England are in the next ranks.

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