Navigating Exodus: Understanding the Migration Dynamics of Health Care Professionals from Turkey

Abstract

Objectives: We aimed to determine the reasons for the emigration of health workers who left Turkey and the difficulties experienced before and after the migration.Methods: This is an exploratory qualitative study of open-text fields focusing on migrant health workers from Turkey. Answers given to five open-ended questions directed to the participants in our survey, with 513 participants between April and June 2022, were used. Data were analyzed following content analysis.Results: A total of 506 responses were analyzed. The mean age of the participants was 39.9 ± 8.8 years (54.2% men, 77.5% medical doctors). Almost all participants reported that the political atmosphere in Turkey forced them to migrate. Some participants were unable to do their jobs due to the increasing violence in the health system in recent years. Most participants saw migration as the only way out, as they did not feel free and safe. Comparatively, they were in a better economic situation in Turkey and had a higher standard of living.Conclusion: Migration creates a sense of security while at the same time accepting a lower standard of living. To organize the sustainable migration of professionals, it is beneficial to ask what framework conditions need to be created and to access the labor market in particular.