Driving forces of general practitioners’ migration in Europe - an exploratory study

Background The shortage of general practitioners (GPs) is a worldwide phenomenon, which encourages the migration of GPs and consequently exacerbates GPs’ shortage. This shortage imposes a threat for the entire healthcare system.

Aim To explore the driving forces of GPs migration in Europe and the reasons to stay in the new country, to migrate further or to return to the home country.

Design and Setting An exploratory, qualitative study of European GPs who have migrated within Europe.

Methods Individual interviews were conducted until data saturation and audio recordings transcribed. Thematic analysis using NVivo was performed.

Results Fifteen interviews with GPs from eight different European countries were conducted. The reasons why European GPs migrate and decide to stay or to leave were grouped under three themes: professional reasons, personal reasons and the situation in the home country or the organisation of healthcare. New professional challenges, better working environment and higher quality training programmes were mentioned as the main reasons for migration. Personal reasons like family’s satisfaction with the living environment, closeness to other family members and financial considerations seemed to influence the decision to stay or leave the most.

Conclusion Migration caused by dissatisfaction with the working and living environment is something countries could potentially work on in order to retain their GPs. As some countries in Europe rely more and more on international recruitment to combat the GP shortage, which in turn worsens the situation in other countries, a more unified Europe-wide approach to GPs shortage and migration is needed.