Are We Facing a Radical Change in the Migration Behavior of Medical Graduates from Less Developed Countries? Demographic Profile vs. Social Push Factors

Abstract

The phenomenon of migration among medical personnel from less developed countries is a large one, with negative effects on the origin country, but more worrying is graduates’ propensity to migrate during or immediately after university studies. The analysis of the labor market in the health sector from the last two decades shows us greater attractiveness of employment in (more) economically developed states compared to the demand from the health sector in graduates’ origin countries. This research’s purpose is to identify the determinants of the propensity to study and work abroad of medical students as a defined factor for better employment, and to identify the push factors in the origin country. As a result of the dichotomous nature of the dependent variables, logistic regression was applied. The independent variables (gender, residence, medical specialization, grades and perceived economic status) were used to identify the odds of the intention to migrate for studies. The results highlighted a higher propensity to migrate for studies among medical students, with opportunities offered by universities differing across countries and geographical areas. Moreover, students with a lower level of household income have openness to migrate, the tuition fees being managed through part-time/temporary employment during studies.

Psychiatrists’ Engagement in Research as a Pathway towards the Expansion of Distributed Medical Education (DME): A Regional Analysis across Two Provinces in Atlantic Canada

“…During the same period, the percentage of female IMGs rose from 28% to 42%. This trend is anticipated to persist, given that women constituted nearly 58% of first-year medical students in Canadian medical schools in 2009-2010 [27]. While recent CMG graduates now have more women than men, a gender gap remains among IMGs.…”

Did Covid-19 make things worse? The pandemic as a push factor stimulating the emigration intentions of junior doctors from Poland: A mixed methods study

“…Many such policies were implemented in reaction to the pandemic [52]. In studies suggesting an increase of the migration potential of healthcare workers, the pandemic was not the main motive of this increase, but rather a factor exposing weak healthcare systems [53,54] and strengthening previous migration intentions caused by other, stronger, push factors [55][56][57]. It is noteworthy that, irrespective of the doctors' country of origin, the main drivers of emigration during the pandemic were the belief in better career opportunities, higher quality equipment and access to medical facilities, followed by factors related to employment conditions like salary, working hours, type of contract [19,55,58].…”