Iran is facing a severe shortage of nurses, which is resulting in fatalities in hospitals as more than 3,000 nurses leave the country each year.
Mohammad Sharifi Moghadam, the Secretary-General of the Nursing Association, stated that “patients are dying due to the shortage of nurses.” He emphasized the dissatisfaction among nurses, with over 90% of them reportedly unhappy with their work, raising serious concerns about the quality of patient care.
The primary destinations for migrating nurses are Germany, the United States, Australia, and Canada. Sharifi Moghadam highlighted the challenges of replacing experienced and professional nursing staff, making it a daunting task.
Sharifi Moghadam recently reported a shortage of 70,000 nurses. According to Iran’s leading economic daily Donyaye Eqtesad newspaper, over 10,000 doctors and nurses had left Iran in the previous year. The country has witnessed the migration of 16,000 general practitioners over the past four years.
Last week, the ILNA news agency reported that nurses receive a mere 2.4 to 3.1 dollars for each overtime hour, leading to increased dissatisfaction within the nursing community at a time when the country’s economy is at its deepest crisis in decades.
Health system indicators suggest that there should be three nurses per thousand citizens or two nurses per hospital bed. Reports indicate that Iran’s current ratio falls below half of the minimum health requirements, raising concerns about the adequacy of healthcare services.