WEB DESK: Pakistan faced a major healthcare challenge in 2025 as nearly 4,000 doctors left the country, marking the highest annual migration of medical professionals on record, according to a digital analytics report released by Gallup Pakistan.
The report, published Feb. 3, 2026, is based on official data from the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment (BOE). It estimates that between 3,800 and 4,000 doctors formally migrated abroad during 2025, highlighting growing concerns about workforce shortages in the country’s healthcare sector.
According to the analysis, the migration rate of Pakistani doctors remained relatively low for nearly three decades, with only a few hundred professionals leaving the country annually. However, the trend turned significantly after 2010, when the number of migrating doctors exceeded 1,000 for the first time.
By the mid of 2010, the annual number of doctors leaving Pakistan consistently ranged between 1,500 and 2,000. The sharp increase recorded in 2025 is being described by analysts as more than a temporary surge, instead signaling a structural and long-term shift in the country’s medical workforce trends.
Experts warn that continued migration could strain Pakistan’s healthcare system, potentially affecting service delivery, medical training capacity and patient care countrywide.
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