International recruitment of health professionals

Gosalakkal, in reply to my response, seems to overlook my use of the
word “churlish”. The point I sought to make was that maybe India and other
countries are wrongly educating too many doctors to cover their own
demands. Targetting medical training to local needs might reduce the
export value of medical graduates. Thailand [1], for example, has
encouraged the use of the Thai language in medical education, making it
marginally more difficult for Thai doctors in English speaking countries.

As well, Addison [2] has pointed out that remittances make up more than
10% of Ghana’s GDP and Alkire and Chen[3] have said that numerous
countries do actively export their medical personnel.

I understand and respect an individual’s capacity to seek the best
for themselves, but I also recognise the fact that governments have the
right to protect their investments and their population.

1. Wibulpolprasert, S., & Pengpaibon, P. (2003). Integrated
strategies to tackle the inequitable distribution of doctors in Thailand:
four decades of experience. Human Resources for Health, 1(12), 1-17.

2. Addison, E.K.Y. (2004). The macroeconomic impact of remittances,
Conference on migration and development in Ghana pp. 1-33). Accra: UNDP.

3. Alkire, S., & Chen, L. (2004). "Medical Exceptionism" in
Internation migration:should doctors and nurses be treated differently?,
JLI Working Paper 7-3 pp. 1-27): Joint Learning Initiative.

Competing interests:
None declared