Around 10,000 Doctors Sought Overseas Work Certificates in Three Years
The Medical Syndicate says good conduct certificate requests have become a proxy for doctors exploring work abroad.
Around 10,000 doctors in Egypt have applied for good conduct certificates over the past three years as they explored employment opportunities abroad, according to Egyptian Medical Syndicate head Dr Osama Abdelhay.
The syndicate does not track the exact number of doctors who ultimately leave the country, but uses certificate requests as an indicator of overseas job-seeking. Abdelhay said annual applications have risen from roughly 3,000 to 4,000 in earlier years to around 5,000 more recently.
He cited low incomes and salaries, workplace conditions, and limited access to training and professional development as key factors pushing doctors to look for work outside Egypt.
Abdelhay said the trend requires close monitoring given the need to retain medical staff and improve working environments within the healthcare system.
Ministry of Health and Population spokesperson Dr Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, however, stressed the distinction between permanent migration and taking up a temporary work contract abroad. He said overseas employment does not necessarily mean doctors are severing professional ties with Egypt.
Abdel Ghaffar also pointed to a wider global shortage of healthcare workers, noting that the World Health Organization projects a shortfall of around 11.1 million health workers by 2030.
On the status of house officers, Abdel Ghaffar said doctors in their internship period receive a training allowance rather than a full salary because they have not yet obtained a licence to practise. The allowance has risen from EGP 400 in 2019 to EGP 2,800 at present, although he acknowledged that the amount remains insufficient.
