Falling wages and staff turnover deepen the crisis in Russian medicine
Kyiv • UNN
Russia is experiencing a growing shortage of primary care doctors, ambulance personnel, and mid-level medical staff. Trade unions report widespread overwork and low wages, leading to high staff turnover.
In Russia, there is a growing shortage of primary care physicians, ambulance workers, and mid-level medical personnel. Trade unions report widespread overwork and low wages. This is reported by the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine (FISU), according to UNN.
Details
It is noted that the number of doctors under the Ministry of Health decreased from over 600,000 in 2000 to 549,000 in 2023. Only 63% of them directly work with patients.
Among mid-level medical personnel, there is a similar dynamic: in 2024, there were 1.18 million employees in state and municipal institutions, which is 16% less than in 2000. Real incomes have not grown over the last decade, and in 40 regions, they have even decreased. This leads to high staff turnover in both the public and private sectors.
According to the FISU, more than two-thirds of doctors work more than one full-time equivalent. A district therapist serves an average of 2,800 patients, compared to the norm of 1,700 – 65% more than the established workload. In emergency medical services, there is one doctor per 16,000 people instead of the normative 9,500. A particularly acute shortage of personnel is observed in primary care, as well as in dentistry, urology, and gastroenterology.
About 80% of ambulance crews are paramedic-led, capable of providing only first aid, while there is a shortage of doctor-led teams. The system has effectively abandoned the standard of "one crew per 10,000 population and 20-minute availability."
Recall
Russia is experiencing a significant shortage of doctors and educators, but instead of developing qualified personnel, the authorities are relying on cheap labor. The country is increasing quotas for labor migrants and simplifying requirements for medical personnel, allowing paramedics to perform the functions of doctors.