Spain is registering doctors faster than patients are aging
The international healthcare workforce crisis has two main factors – populations are aging pushing demand for healthcare up, and there is a problem with supply as groups struggle to train, hire and retain doctors. That said, in Spain at least, the number of registered doctors is growing at a quicker rate than the population is aging.
The number of registered doctors and nurses in Spain has been steadily increasing year-on-year according to INE – the Spanish national statistics provider. The total number of registered healthcare professionals increased by approximately 2.7% in 2022 according to Spanish-language healthcare business news site Planta Doce.
While Spain’s population is older than many of its European counterparts, the number of those aged 65+ has actually grown at a slower rate than the number of registered healthcare professionals since 2013. When indexing 2013 data at 100, it is clear the total number of registered healthcare professionals has grown 10 p.p. more than the total number of those aged 65+.
However, there are explanations as to how this data doesn’t tell the whole story. In Spain there are “medical desert” areas which are underserved, such as Andalusia and the Balearic Islands. This problem doesn’t seem to have been fixed despite public universities opening medical training facilities in these areas. There are also shortages in specialties like paediatric care and radiology. Read more here.
There are also problems which are widely seen in other markets, such as qualified professionals leaving medicine, leaving the country, or reducing their hours. The Local, an online English-language news outlet writing on Spain, reports 20,000 doctors are looking to leave Spain to go abroad. An increase in non-communicable diseases due to factors such as smoking and obesity are also increasing demand.
We would welcome your thoughts on this story. Email your views to Joe Quiruga or call 0207 183 3779.
