How America is stealing the world's doctors

An Indian doctor examines a school teach
An Indian doctor examines a school teacher wearing a mask as examinations of pupils and staff are carried out at a school in Ahmedabad on August 18, 2009.
SAM PANTHAKY/AFP/Getty Images

A quarter of the doctors practicing in America were trained overseas, many from countries with acute health-worker crises. A quarter of them come from India and Pakistan, nations with a mere 1.13 doctors per 1,000 inhabitants. Contrast that to America's ratio of 13.22, one of the highest in the world.

We wanted to know more after reading the New York Times Magazine article this month about America stealing the world's doctors.

There are many job-related reasons a doctor would be attracted to working here: better pay, state-of-the-art technology and facilities. But what does it mean for the countries they leave?

Kate Tulenko, deputy director of CapacityPlus and director of IntraHealth International, will join The Daily Circuit Monday to discuss the issue.

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"This can be a really divisive issue," she said. "It's a jobs issue, it's an immigration issue, it's a quality of care issue, and it's an economic issue."

Dr. Ajay Rawal, pathologist at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, will also join the discussion. He went to school in India and moved to the United States to practice medicine.

KERRI'S TAKEAWAY

There's more to the story than moving to the United States for good pay.