In a country once economically viable, Iran now grapples with a devastating crisis as its middle class, including skilled professionals like physicians, faces unprecedented challenges under the policies of the ruling clerics.
This crisis, which used to predominantly affect unskilled workers and metropolitan suburbanites, now engulfs even highly educated professionals.
On August 1, a heart-wrenching report from the state-run ILNA news agency highlighted the suicide of a medical resident. This, unfortunately, isn’t an isolated incident, as 13 residents reportedly took their own lives within a year. The underlying issues? Paltry wages, no insurance, and relentless working hours.
In a shocking revelation just two days after, other state media outlets reported the suicides of two nurses from Kermanshah on the same day. Financial hardships combined with intense work pressures were to blame.
The gloomy landscape has pushed many to seek greener pastures abroad. According to an August 10 report from the state-run Shargh daily, 16,000 physicians have migrated from Iran in the last three years alone. The paper cites economic pressures, cultural challenges, and bleak futures for their children as driving forces behind this exodus. It posed a poignant question, “If a physician isn’t recognized economically, financially, and socially, will they have any motivation to serve?”
Moreover, another report from Sahebkhabar mentioned that an additional 4,027 physicians are poised to leave the country.
Deputy Health Minister Acknowledges #Iran’s Doctor Shortage
Iran is suffering from a "serious shortage of physicians”, according to the Deputy Health Minister, as thousands of local doctors have emigrated.https://t.co/RZHyLcW9pQ pic.twitter.com/ojyVeFdX7h— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) July 1, 2019
The grim economic situation even compelled Mohammad Bagher Heydari, the head of the Medical Council in Kermanshah Province, to confess in 2021 that “70% of physicians are below the poverty line.”
Earning a meager 12,500 tomans after expenses and factoring in the rising inflation rate, all general practitioners find themselves below the poverty line. This despite the regime’s baffling stance, as reported by the Javan newspaper, which denies physicians basic government subsidies on the grounds of their “upper-class” status.
Driven by economic constraints, many physicians are opting to migrate to countries like Oman and Turkey where they’re lured by better income opportunities. Some even abandoning their practice due to under-the-table dealings, with over 1,786 physicians reported for non-compliance.
Today, across Tehran, from students to Bazaar merchants & doctors; people have shaken the pillars of Khamenei’s rule with chants of “Death to the dictator”
The era of the criminal mullahs has come to an end; they cannot evade their inevitable overthrow#IranRevolution#MahsaAmini pic.twitter.com/Q2tTbF9vSQ— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) October 26, 2022
Such a grim scenario isn’t just a tale of the hardships faced by professionals; it speaks volumes about the larger societal challenges and corruption. Numerous families are on the edge, torn apart by medical expenses or driven to bankruptcy.
Physicians, usually regarded as a better-off segment of society, are equally, if not more, affected by the nation’s economic downturn. The prevalent poverty, widespread migration, and distressing cases of suicides among them underline that the theocratic regime’s economic malfeasance leaves no strata untouched.
MEK Iran (follow us on Twitter and Facebook), Maryam Rajavi’s on her site, Twitter & Facebook, NCRI (Twitter & Facebook), and People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran – MEK IRAN – YouTu