Exporting doctors |
ONE of the most coveted educational paths in Pakistan is to study medicine. Every year, tens of thousands of young Pakistanis study hard and take exams hoping for scores that are good enough to allow them to study medicine. Only the very best succeed, for there are always more students wanting seats at the country’s medical colleges than are available. Those that make it are congratulated widely by friends and family because they now have a chance at a solid future. That future is best guaranteed if the newly graduated doctor is able to take the exams that allow them to get into residency programmes in the US or UK.
Only the best secure those spots but, for them, the future is undoubtedly more different from those left to endure poorly paid house jobs in Pakistan. As is well known, the pay for a trainee doctor in Pakistan is a joke. The story for those who match into residency programmes in the US is remarkably different. They find themselves transported to state-of-the-art hospitals where they can earn decently even as trainees. This year, according to the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, more than 1,400 Pakistani medical graduates matched into residency programmes in the US. In the words of PMDC........