Kazakhstan Cuts Medical Staff Shortage by 20%, Slashes Emigration Fivefold

Over the past two years, Kazakhstan has implemented a comprehensive set of measures to provide social support and elevate the status of healthcare workers, following a directive from the Head of State.

These efforts have yielded significant results: the shortage of doctors has decreased by 20.4%, while the deficit of nursing staff has fallen by 13%. The country has also achieved staffing levels comparable to OECD nations and reduced the emigration of medical professionals abroad nearly fivefold over the last five years.

A series of new laws have been enacted to protect healthcare workers. These include mandatory professional liability insurance for medical personnel and stricter penalties for physical violence or cruelty against them while they perform their duties. Additional measures focus on creating safer working conditions.

To attract specialists to rural areas facing acute shortages, substantial one-time social payments have been introduced. For doctors in critical fields like obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, anesthesiology, and intensive care, this payment amounts to 100 times the monthly calculation index (MCI), or approximately 8.5 million tenge.

Further social support measures include providing official housing, relocation allowances, compensation for utility costs, and other benefits for medical staff.

The data shows a clear positive trend. Compared to 2023, the national doctor shortage dropped from 4,863.75 full-time positions to 3,869.5—a reduction of over 20%. The situation in rural healthcare improved even more markedly, with a 26.7% decrease in doctor vacancies there.

The shortage of nursing staff also saw a steady decline of 13%, falling from 4,819.75 to 4,195 positions.

In terms of population coverage, Kazakhstan now has 41 doctors per 10,000 people (up from 40.6 in 2023) and nearly 96 nurses per 10,000 people. These figures are now on par with developed nations such as the United Kingdom (34 doctors), Estonia (35), and Spain (44).

A particularly striking achievement is the dramatic reduction in medical brain drain. Over five years, the number of specialists leaving the country has plummeted from over nine hundred to under two hundred annually: from 904 in 2021, down to 186 in 2025. This represents an almost fivefold decrease in emigration.

The achieved outcomes confirm the effectiveness of Kazakhstan's integrated approach aimed at enhancing the prestige of medical professions, improving working conditions, and developing its personnel training system.