Iranian Official Raises Alarm Over Exodus of Nurses

Iran Wire
Aug 19, 2024

Iranian Official Raises Alarm Over Exodus of Nurses


Iran's head of the Ministry of Health Committee for cabinet members selection, Ali Jafarian, has raised an alarm over the mass exodus of healthcare professionals from Iran. 

In a recent statement, Jafarian described the situation of nurses migrating or leaving their jobs as "terrible" and emphasized the wave of nurses emigrating to Germany.

"One by one, nurses are learning German so that they can leave the country," Jafarian said.

He noted that a German language certificate is often all that is needed to facilitate their departure. 

The brain drain is having a significant impact on Iran's healthcare system, with newly built hospitals in Tehran unable to open due to staff shortages.

The crisis extends beyond nursing. Jafarian revealed that from some smaller hospitals, as many as 30 members have emigrated in recent years. 

He emphasized that the issue is not a lack of trained professionals, but rather a lack of incentives for them to stay in Iran. 

"The most important reason is hope, hope for the future," he explained.

Statistics from the nursing system organization show that out of about 10,000 nursing students, around 3,000 nurses annually obtain good standing certificates to emigrate.

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