Germany: Foreign Doctors Facing Challenges in Specialized Healthcare Work

Germany, which suffers from a shortage of specialist healthcare workers, has become one of the most popular destinations for foreign doctors in Europe in recent years. unnatural in the country has increased, according to the German Medical Association, to nearly 60,000 doctors, and they now make up about 12 percent of German doctors.

Most foreign doctors come from other European countries or countries in the Middle East. Syrians are at the top of the list according to statistics(6,120 doctors), followed by the Romans (4,668), the Austrians (2,993), the Greeks, then the Russians, and the Turks.

But before they get a chance to work in Germany, foreign doctors go through a strict qualification procedure, which includes two tests in general German language skills and professional language.

A useless drain of energy and time

Due to the real need for specialized labor in the field, this group believes that the effort and time spent at this stage reduces much of it, which should be invested in a to work to fill the great shortage in this vital part of the country. .

Dr. Fouad Zidan, a Syrian doctor who practiced the medical profession for more than 15 years in his country of origin, Syria, which he left after the war, headed for Germany in search of safety, but also with the hope that it will continue to perform. his professional role as a doctor specializing in anesthesia, an area in which there is a great shortage in Germany.

His efforts to enter the labor market began when he came to study the language and overcame many bureaucratic obstacles. Although the time of the spread of the Corona virus increased the delay in procedures work, he has not lost hope until today, but until now. he is not able to work as a doctor.

He says in an interview with DW Arabia: “Over the past years, I have been unemployed for reasons that have nothing to do with me, and this is very frustrating in a country that is trying to import doctors from abroad in any way, even if there are thousands here in a state of unemployment, it is unreasonable.”

Organizations are sounding the alarm, but…

International health organizations have warned that the severe shortage of medical personnel has become a threat to the health of citizens around the world. In Germany, statistics show that there are 4.53 doctors for every 1,000 people, according to official statistics, and the number of doctors is declining rapidly, making The shortage Germany faces in its medical workforce Very big.

As of 2023, 41% of doctors working in Germany will be over 60 years old, and around 5,000 to 8,000 medical clinics are expected to close, as the doctors working in them reach retirement age.

Protests took place in Germany’s healthcare sector due to major problems, including salaries and long working hours Photo: Erbil Basay / AA alliance / photo

Since there are not enough new graduates to compensate retirees, hiring foreign doctors is the only solution to prevent disruption in the health system, but these doctors complain about many obstacles, including the Syrian doctor Muhammad al-Hakim.

Al-Hakim arrived in Germany in 2015. He says: “The time required to complete a medical degree in Germany Varies accordingly Doctor’s legal status, refugee “Unlike an immigrant or someone who came as a student, for example, refugees need longer times to complete all the procedures.”

On the other hand, some of the statements from the German side talk about complaints from some patients who cannot communicate smoothly with foreign doctors, which strongly raises a language problem despite the efforts made by foreign doctors to obtain certificates in standard German or the specific medical language, it is still difficult to understand local dialects.

Dr. Muhammad al-Hakim, who practiced medicine for more than 15 years in Syria, and who started working in Germany after almost six years of waiting after his asylum, gave in 2021, referred to the issue of language by saying, “When I examine asylum. woman… German She tells from the age Ninety years, She says yes I swallowed Piece or not I understand what i This is amazing Since the piece is from German or rather it was said in a local dialect, the problem is no longer there. The important thing is that I am understood the story.”

He continues: “Through pictures Radiation I can confirm where it is and what it is, but that Finish My rejection During exams the language medicine, because of or to understand a word One, that is greatly exaggerated. “

Discrimination against foreign doctors.. What are the reasons?

A 2022 study published by the University of Basel, which surveyed staff at two large university hospitals in Germany, found discrimination against many foreign healthcare professionals including nurses and doctors because of language, nationality and ethnicity.

In Germany, statistics show that there are 4.53 patients per thousand people according to official statistics. The number of doctors is dwindling rapidly, leaving the country facing a shortage in its medical workforce Picture: Ina Fassbender/AFP/Getty Images

For Dr. Muhammad al-Hakim, the issue “often goes beyond racism, to the point that it is just enough. “ “double standards” He criticized the responsibility Hard situation for doctors who graduate from Syrian universities It made them unemployed for several years, and in Germany they were dealing with doctors coming from Eastern European countries, such as Romania or Bulgaria, Complex flexibility.

He says this flexibility shows up when it comes to medical language testing and change certificates, which Al-Hakim, who currently works in a private clinic in Germany, finds “unnecessary”. fair.” To the south the doctor Syrian, because Universities Syrian She is known for her efficiency. “

Dr. Hadi, a specialist in internal medicine, came from Libya about six years ago He has not completed a year after starting his work in a German hospital, and the reason is the a bureaucratic hurdle that surprised him after he successfully passed. all linguistic and professional tests, which cost him time and money and spent years without gaining professional knowledge.

For the reasons, according to him, he has no responsibility, because he believes that “in Germany, whether you are a refugee or an immigrant, the suffering of foreign doctors with bureaucracy is like the same, and it extends into. time or contracts with small differences, but it is very frustrating.”

Dr. Fouad Zidan, for his part, says that this causes a great loss for Germany He says, “Whether foreign doctors are those who started working or those who were not able, the percentage of those who intend to emigrate from Germany is very large to hear about dozens leaving every time, including those who have obtained citizenship. In this way, Germany will lose more energy and make the problem deeper.