One out of four doctors works in Bucharest. Counties with the Fewest Doctors / “Significant Imbalances”
Almost a quarter of the total number of doctors who have a license to practice freely and are currently practicing in Romania work in Bucharest: 15,343. Our country has a total of 61,934 doctors, to which are added 22,000 resident doctors, who are in the process of training in all specialties, according to the data of the College of Doctors.
The counties with the largest number of doctors, after Bucharest, are:
- Cluj – 4,166
- Timiş – 4,111
- Iasi – 3,790
- Dolj – 3,034
- Mureș – 2,325
At the opposite pole, the counties with the lowest number of doctors are:
- Riders – 254
- Tulcea – 255
- Giurgiu – 280
- Ialomita – 379
- Hall – 400
“Significant imbalances”
“It is not only the number of doctors that matters, but also the way in which they are distributed and integrated into the system,” says the College of Physicians, which speaks of “significant imbalances between urban and rural environments, between large university centers and less developed areas.”
“There are communities where access to medical services remains limited, either due to the shortage of doctors in certain specialties in various regions, or due to the lack of conditions that allow attracting and maintaining doctors”, add the representatives of the College of Doctors.
The challenge of the health system, says the College of Doctors, is no longer only the training of doctors, but also the intelligent and equitable use of human resources, as well as the development and implementation of coherent policies regarding human resources in health.
“There is a need for coherent policies, mechanisms for attracting and retaining doctors in areas with shortages, adequate working conditions and a framework that supports long-term professional development. We must also encourage an approach oriented towards prevention and public health, because the future of medicine does not only mean treating diseases, but also avoiding them. Romania has doctors, but it still needs human resources. Romanian doctors must be supported and valued”, says the president of the College of Doctors, prof. Dr. Cătălina Poiană, in a message sent on World Health Day.
