Residency training or migration: a multi-centric study exploring the willingness to migrate among medical residents in Iran.

Background: The migration of skilled medical professionals from low- and middle-income countries, particularly when facing a shortage of physicians, negatively affects the capacity to meet essential health and social needs. This study aimed to investigate the willingness to migrate and its associated factors from the perspective of medical residents in Iran.

Methods: This multi-centric cross-sectional study was conducted in four top-ranked medical schools across Iran. A validated questionnaire regarding the willingness to migrate and its associated factors was distributed among medical residents from 17 residency programs.

Results: A total of 254 responses were received. Findings demonstrated that 81.5% of medical residents were willing to emigrate, while 79.5% stated that if they had the current insight about the condition of the residency programs at the time of enrollment, they would choose migration over entering the residency training. However, the majority of participants had no planning to migrate. Most participants believed that the time after obtaining M.D. degree is the most appropriate time to migrate. The most common reasons for the willingness to migrate were disproportionate income compared to the workload and daily living costs, better welfare in destination countries, and unfair laws of employment and income in the health system. Also the economic and occupational factors had the greatest impact on willingness to migrate.

Conclusion: An alarming percentage of medical residents in Iran are inclined to migrate. Improving the condition of residency programs with adjusted shift hours and adequate salaries might increase the motivation of Iranian medical doctors to enter the residency program, thereby reducing their willingness to migrate.