Germany faces a severe shortage of doctors, while numerous refugee Ukrainian doctors are not allowed to work. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, at least 1674 refugee Ukrainian doctors have applied for licensure in Germany according to a report by "Welt am Sonntag." So far, only 187 applications have been approved, while 1402 applications are still being processed.
The data are based on feedback from 14 federal states. Bremen and Hesse could only provide incomplete information. The waiting times for the approval of doctors from countries outside the EU typically range between 15 months and three years. About one and a half years ago, only a few Ukrainian doctors had submitted applications.
The state of affairs is devastating," criticized Gerald Gaß, President of the German Hospital Association, in an interview with "Welt am Sonntag." The bureaucracy is hampering important processes such as the recognition of doctors. "Leaving skilled professionals on welfare instead of deploying them where they are urgently needed and willing to work is something we simply cannot afford anymore." Gaß is calling for a "genuine drive to reduce bureaucracy.
Susanne Johna, Chairwoman of the Medical Association Marburger Bund, also points to "bureaucratic hurdles and personnel-depleted state authorities." Doctors from third countries increasingly choose other European countries.
The Green Party health politician Janosch Dahmen emphasized that the German healthcare system is suffering from a dramatic labor shortage and Ukrainian doctors could be a valuable support. The high number of unprocessed applications shows "that the current recognition procedures are dysfunctional, far too cumbersome, and very bureaucratically organized by the federal states.” Furthermore, the medical training in European neighboring countries such as Ukraine meets the standards in EU countries.
In April, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) pointed out significant gaps in medical care. "We have not trained 50,000 doctors over the past ten years. As a result, we will lack general practitioners across the board in the coming years. We are heading for a very difficult supply situation," he said. "We are short of 5,000 university places per year. That’s why we will be short of a total of 50,000 doctors over the next ten years. Everyone will feel this.
The integration of refugee Ukrainian doctors could be a solution to the impending doctor shortage. However, urgent reforms and a reduction in bureaucracy are necessary to integrate these qualified professionals into the German healthcare system as quickly as possible.
