Doctor exodus surges as western countries lure them with attractive salaries

At least three medical doctors vacate their post at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital’s (KBTH) Department of Surgery for greener pastures on a monthly basis, the department’s head, Professor J.E Mensah, has told the B&FT.

Prof. Mensah said the phenomenon, which is also dire in other departments of the hospital, began peaking during the advent of COVID-19 till date.

“During and after COVID, there was and is a high demand for specialised medical staff and critical expertise worldwide. These experts are leaving the country, especially critical-care nurses and doctors,” he said.

Similarly, at Pantang Hospital in Accra nearly 150 experienced nurses and other health professionals from that facility alone have left the country’s shores in search of greener pastures over the last six years.

Of that number 100 are specialised psychiatric and general nurses, while the rest consist of doctors, pharmacists, technicians and other experienced personnel in the healthcare delivery chain.

More worryingly, over 3,000 nurses and midwives reportedly travelled out of the country in 2022 alone in search of pastures green, says the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA).

Aggressive hiring procedures

According to Prof. Mensah, some western countries are even more aggressive, and are employing bonded nurses and doctors using attractive salaries that these experts cannot reject.

As long as those hospitals abroad are offering very attractive salaries, the situation seems impossible to halt, he said, adding: “We cannot match the salaries being offered in Europe and North America, and it has become difficult to convince these people to stay”.

He said the western countries are very much interested in the skilled medical expertise which KBTH and other health facilities across the country are endowed with. He lamented that low salaries for doctors and specialised medical staff remains the problem.

Salary disparity

Interestingly, the B&FT observed that a medical doctor who currently works at the KBTH or other national hospitals across the country do not earn up to US$400 per month.

Also, a senior medical doctor who may have practiced for more than two decades, and probably a lecturer at a medical school in Ghana, does not earn up to US$1,500 per month in salaries and allowances.

According to Forbes, an expert doctor of any nationality who is employed in the US is likely to get paid an average annual salary of US$165,347 and more in some fields.

Willingness to stay

Despite the temptation to leave, Prof. Mensah said some doctors are prepared to stay and offer their services here.

“For some of us, we know this is our country and we are determined to stay and encourage the younger ones to also stay and give their best,” he said.

He encouraged government to invest in training more doctors and ensure that they are employed as quickly as possible.

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