According to representatives of doctors in Kosovo, Albania and North Macedonia, the number of healthcare professionals seeking employment in European countries has not decreased. Inadequate working conditions and low salaries are considered the main reasons why healthcare workers are leaving the region.
Bedri Ramadani, originally from Kosovo, has been living and working in Germany for 25 years.
He is deputy director of the Cardiac Surgery Clinic in Düsseldorf and says that the working conditions there are very good.
Ramadani does not rule out the possibility of serving in Kosovo in the future, but says that the country’s politics should support health institutions, so that doctors can have more suitable working conditions.
The exact number of health professionals leaving Kosovo is unknown. But one indicator is the number of those seeking a certificate of ethics and profession – a document that serves to be employed abroad.
By the end of this year, the number of health professionals seeking this certificate is expected to exceed one hundred, says the president of the Kosovo Doctors Chamber, Pleurat Sejdiu.
The Order of Physicians of Albania National Council (KKUMSH) also said in a written response to KosovaPress that during the past year, the number of doctors who have requested the certificate that serves to work abroad is around 150.
According to KKUMSH, most of them are general practitioners.
“In 2022, 191 certificates of good conduct were issued, while in 2023, 147 doctors requested this document. This certificate is obtained by doctors who want to work abroad. By doctors who apply for a master’s or specialization abroad. By those who go to training or summer schools or for various qualifications. By doctors who work voluntarily in humanitarian organizations and by those who work with international organizations for projects within Albania. Most are doctors who have received this certificate”, reads the KKUMSH response.
According to this council, some of the countries where Albanian doctors apply are Italy, Germany, England, the United States, Canada, France, Switzerland and Austria.
Approximately the same figure as Kosovo is also mentioned by the president of the Association of Doctors in North Macedonia, Nevzat Elezi.
Kosovo has been facing the problem of the departure of health personnel for several years now.
The largest number of those leaving are nurses.
The salary of nurses in Kosovo is around 500 euros, while the salary for doctors goes up to over 1,000 euros./Z. Zeneli
