The financial crisis that crippled Greece in recent years has escalated the large scale immigration flow out of the country, influencing both the structure and demographic profile of the society, since of the young and educated see no future in staying home.
The last six years has seen doctors leave in droves, with the Athens Medical Association (ISA) confirming that it issued a total of 1,018 certificates between January 1 and October 24 allowing Greek doctors to practice abroad.
During the whole of 2015, ISA issued 1,521 such documents, which was slightly higher than the 1,380 it produced in 2014 and 1,488 in 2013. The year which saw the highest level of emigration among Greek doctors was in 2013, when ISA issued 1,808 certificates. In total, between 2010 and this year, ISA has readied paperwork for more than 9,300 medical professionals looking to leave Greece.
The majority of certificates prepared this year (719) concerned doctors who had completed their residencies but were not able to find work in Greece. The UK was the most popular destination (487), followed by Germany (102), Cyprus (77), France (75), Switzerland (58) and Sweden (44). Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have also had a steady presence on the list over the last few years.
