Nigeria is reportedly set to become the country with the second highest number of foreign-trained doctors in the UK.
Nigeria is set to become the country with the second highest number of foreign-trained doctors in the UK.
About 1,197 Nigerian-trained doctors have moved to the UK since May 29, 2023 to date, according to Punch.
Currently, India continues to be the country with the highest number of foreign-trained doctors in the UK, according to the UK General Medical Council register.
It was gathered that about 1,197 Nigerian-trained doctors were licensed between May 29, 2023 and December 1, 2023, with the total number of Nigerian doctors licensed to practice in the United Kingdom now standing at 12,198.
This number, however, excludes Nigerian doctors who were trained in other countries.
The report also indicated that there are 73 doctors with Nigerian training in the field of anesthetics and intensive medicine, 61 in the field of emergency medicine, 241 in general medicine, 207 in obstetrics and gynecology, 17 in occupational medicine, 16 in ophthalmology, area of pediatrics with 164 and 50 for pathology.
There are also 35 for public health, 357 for psychiatry, 29 for psychiatry and 135 for surgery.
There has been a high rate of doctors leaving the country in search of greener pastures abroad.
In 2015, only 233 Nigerian doctors moved to the UK. The number increased to 279 in 2016 while the number was 475 in 2017. In 2018, the number rose to 852 while it further increased to 1,347 in 2019.
In 2020, the number was 833, although the GMC closed operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The number for 2021 was estimated at 932.
The President of the Committee of Chief Medical Directors of Federal Tertiary Hospitals, Prof. Emem Bassey, commenting recently on the brain drain, recently said: “Some African countries are also starting to poach Nigeria.
“The West Coast is looking for our experts. Many people now go to places like Sierra Leone and Gambia and the salaries they earn vary between 3,000 and 4,000 dollars. It's about three to four times what they earn at home. So we are starting to see that people are also leaving for other African countries.
“The health sector is currently going through a major crisis in terms of manpower. What we're seeing is that medical specialists, not just doctors, even nurses, even more nurses are leaving. Doctors, nurses, laboratory scientists, physiotherapists, radiologists and all manner of healthcare professionals are leaving the country in droves.”
Source: www.lindaikejisblog.com