ANKARA (Ahval) – Around 80 doctors are leaving Turkey each month while over 8,000 have resigned since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic over what they are calling increasingly difficult working conditions, according to a news survey released by Turkey’s top medical association.
Thousands have requested documentation from the Turkish Medical Association (TTB), which would allow then to work abroad, BirGün newspaper cited the association as saying during a press conference on Saturday.
The TTB is beginning an initiative to have the demands of the country’s overworked doctors met, BirGün said.
Long shifts that can extend to 36 hours, heavy workloads, physical and verbal attacks, workplace bullying are some of the concerns cited by the country’s doctors, which have increased since March 2020, according to the TTB.
The TTB survey arrives as COVID-19 infections in the country climbed above 20,000 daily in late July, reaching their highest levels in the country since April, after the government ended daily curfews and travel restrictions at the start that month. New cases numbered less than 5,000 per day in early July.
In terms of vaccination, Turkey ranks 67th globally after fully vaccinating 51.3 percent of its citizens, according to ourworldindata.org. The country lags behind 27 European countries. The average inoculation rate is 62.1 percent in the European Union.
The TTB on Saturday accused the government of remaining indifferent to the concerns facing the country’s doctors, which are prompting them to resign, migrate and suffer mental breakdowns, among other repercussions.
“In the year 2020 alone, some 12,000 cases of attacks on health personnel took place, the TTB said, adding that “8,000 doctors had resigned over the span of 18 months, according to unofficial documentation.”
“Around 80 doctors a month are choosing to serve as migrant doctors abroad instead of being doctors in this country,” the TTB added.