Page 320 - Volume 2_CHANGES_merged_with links

Obstacles to progress

Distortions

“ Additionally, doctors trained in sub-Saharan Africa and working in OECD countries
represent close to one quarter (23%) of the current doctor workforce in those source
countries.”

"Brain Drain of Workers from Poor to Rich Countries." 400
Global Issues (April 2006)

*****
" Ghana, with a population of 20 million, has only 1500 doctors, and more than two thirds

of young Ghanaian doctors leave the country within three years of graduation. In
Mozambique, a nation of similar size, there are just 500 doctors.”

"Developed world is robbing African countries of health staff" 401
Rebecca Coombes, BMJ, (April 2005)
*****

" Some estimates show that Malawi trains 60 nurses a year, but loses around 100, more
than half of them going to the United Kingdom. Yet the country also had vacancies in all

nursing and clinical cadres, with a horrific 75 percent vacancy rate for nurses. Only 28
percent of targeted clinical officers and 40 percent of targeted nurse midwife cadres

were filled, yet they carry out the bulk of emergency obstetric care.
***
In 2004, Malawi had 1.1 doctors and 25.5 nurses for every 100,000 people--so the entire
country had only about 250 doctors. In comparison, neighbouring Tanzania had 2.3

doctors and 36.6 nurses per 100,000 population in 2004, while the regional density in
Africa was 22 doctors and 90 nurses per 100,000 population.
***
Although more than 80 percent of Malawi's people reside in rural areas, half of Malawi's

doctors worked in central hospitals, and an astounding 16 of 23 district hospitals did not
have a single doctor.

***
Graduates from Malawi's four main health training institutions rose from 917 in 2004 to

1,277 in 2009.
Physician graduates from the College of Medicine increased from 18 in 2004 to 31 in
2009, as the annual output of clinical officers doubled and that of laboratory technicians

quintupled to 131. At the same time, the migration of nurses declined.”
"Brain Drain and Human Capital Formation in Developing Countries: Winners and Losers." 402
The Economic Journal (April 2008)
Beine, Michel, Fréderic Docquier, and Hillel Rapoport.