Turkey has lowest doctor-to-population ratio in Europe, Eurostat data reveals

Turkey ranked last among European countries in terms of the doctor-to-population ratio as there are 218 doctors per 100,000 people, according to Eurostat data for 2021.

Duvar English

Turkey ranks fifth after Germany, Italy, France, and Spain in terms of the total number of doctors, yet last with the doctor-to-population ratio, according to according to the European Statistical Office (Eurostat) as reported by the Euronews Turkish.

The total number of physicians in Turkey is 183,569 while Germany is at the top with 377,000 physicians.

Nonetheless, Turkeys ranked last with 218 doctors per 100,000 people when the doctor-to-population ratio is considered while Greece is at the top with 629 doctors per capita. 

There has been a dramatic increase of Turkish doctors who wants to practice abroad after the increasing workplace violence and worsening working conditions in the recent years. Most of them immigrated to Germany particularly after it initiated a visa program for qualified workers.

Turkish citizens also ranked five among European nations in number of annual doctor visits with eight visits in average. Slovakia ranked first with 11 times, while Sweden ranked last with 2.3 times.