Massive shortage of doctors

Italy wants to bring in more doctors from abroad

Italy wants to recruit more doctors from abroad.(Bild: stock.adobe.com)

Italy is struggling with a shortage of doctors: Similar to Austria, doctors are desperately needed in our neighboring country Italy. Many prefer to go abroad or work in the private sector. Italy therefore now wants to bring more foreign doctors into the country.

According to estimates, there is a shortage of at least 20,000 doctors and 70,000 nurses in the public healthcare system. The reason for this is the current law, which restricts the recruitment of medical staff in order to save money. In fact, spending on healthcare staff is at the same level as it was 20 years ago.

Employment is made easier for foreigners
In order to counteract the chronic shortage of staff in the public healthcare system, the government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wants to make it easier to employ doctors from abroad. The cabinet is planning to relax the criteria according to which foreign doctors can be employed in the public healthcare system.

A decree passed in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, which made it easier to hire doctors from non-EU countries, is also to be extended beyond the 2025 deadline. 500 doctors from Cuba were hired by the southern Italian region of Calabria in 2022 to address the staffing problems in the public healthcare system there.

Healthcare staff in front of the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan(Bild: APA/AFP/Piero CRUCIATTI)

21,000 foreign doctors worked in the Italian healthcare system in 2019, the year before the pandemic, and this figure rose to 28,000 in 2023. 87% of them came from non-EU countries. In addition, 23,000 foreign nurses are employed in Italy, 9,456 of whom are from outside the EU. According to government plans, their numbers are set to increase further in the coming years.

Critical situation in emergency departments
The medical association Anaao Assomed believes that the public health service must become more attractive again for doctors and other health professionals. Many medical professionals would go abroad or work in the private sector after graduating. Many would leave the public health system at the age of 50. Low salaries, staff shortages and consequently heavier work shifts are the causes. The situation is particularly critical in some medical areas such as the emergency room and emergency departments.

Since 2005, ten percent of doctors who have retired have not been replaced. The number of young specialists who have entered the healthcare sector in the same period is not sufficient to replace all retired doctors. The result is that the public healthcare system is no longer able to guarantee adequate services everywhere, experts complain.