Pakistani nurses move to Western nations, adding to healthcare crisis
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — As the United Kingdom, Canada, and other Western nations aggressively recruit foreign healthcare workers to address their staffing shortages, Gulf News reports that Pakistan is facing a devastating brain drain that threatens to collapse its medical system.
Global demand worsens Pakistan’s nurse shortage
With only 116,659 registered nurses serving a population of 240 million, hospitals across Pakistan are struggling to provide basic care. The nurse-to-doctor ratio has plummeted to a dangerous 0.5 per doctor.
Western nations, such as Canada and the UK, are believed to be contributing to the crisis, as they are actively attracting Pakistani medical workers with recruitment campaigns, such as higher wages and different employment conditions.
In 2024 alone, 5.8% of Pakistan’s nursing workforce migrated to foreign countries, with an expected increase in this number in 2025.
Systemic failures compound the problem
Obsolete policies, such as the Pakistan Nursing Council’s limit on admissions, hinder the country’s ability to produce sufficient nursing professionals to fill the vacancies left by those who depart.
“The situation is dire. Despite a rise in private sector nursing schools, the Pakistan Nursing Council continues to limit student quotas, slowing down efforts to fill this critical gap. The irony is that these trained professionals are eventually earning foreign exchange for Pakistan, yet support for nursing education remains inadequate,” a head of a private nursing college said.
The situation is further complicated by the proliferation of “ghost colleges,” unaccredited institutions providing substandard education, as raised by Senator Amir Waliuddin Chishti.
While Punjab province has established 44 nursing schools, there’s no coordinated national strategy to address the widening gap between healthcare needs and available staff.
Western recruitment creates vicious cycle
Nurses working in countries overseas send valuable remittances back home, but due to this migration, there is a complex shortage of staff in public hospitals.
Institutions such as the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) are grappling with the challenges posed by the growing number of employees who are relocating to foreign countries.
“Even hospitals like the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) need urgent overhauls,” said the committee members.
More than 336,442 skilled Pakistani employees left the country in the first half of 2025 in both official and unofficial migration streams, and the healthcare employees constituted a huge proportion.
Global implications of the healthcare drain
The current situation highlights the complex ethics of international medical recruitment. Although some Western countries benefit from well-trained, English-speaking healthcare staff, source countries like Pakistan are losing out due to a shortage in their health systems.
Pakistan’s healthcare system faces significant challenges due to the outflow of its trained nurses to Western countries. This global demand for healthcare professionals highlights a pressing concern for developing nations: the need for sustainable medical workforces, and addressing this issue requires immediate international attention.
Experts say the trend will persist unless Pakistan introduces competent retention measures, better work conditions, and growth opportunities in careers.
