Chronic underfunding, low wages, and mass migration of medical professionals are leaving patients and staff in crisis across Iran.
Iran’s healthcare system is facing one of its worst crises in decades, with severe shortages of doctors and nurses pushing hospitals and clinics to the brink of collapse. From overcrowded wards in Tehran’s largest hospitals to understaffed rural clinics in impoverished provinces, the pressure on medical staff is intensifying daily.
At the root of this crisis lies a combination of economic mismanagement, deliberate underfunding, and the regime’s refusal to invest in the health sector. Accounts from medical staff reveal a system on the verge of breaking down, where both caregivers and patients are suffering the consequences.
According to official statistics, Iran faces a shortage of nearly 100,000 nurses, a deficit that translates into crushing workloads, job burnout, and declining quality of care. The ratio of nurses in Iran is just 17 per 10,000 people, far below the global average of 27.4.
The picture is no better for physicians: Iran has just 16 doctors per 10,000 people, well under the 30–50 doctors per 10,000 available in developed nations.
