New Zealand’s Doctor Shortage: Are We Solving the Problem or Just Outsourcing It?

The Medical Council of New Zealand decided to fast-track doctors from Chile, Luxembourg and Croatia in their latest long line of attempts to fix New Zealand’s chronic healthcare staffing crisis. But here’s the uncomfortable part - They are not exactly solving the problem, they are rather outsourcing it.

And what's even more questionable is they may be doing it in a way that might actually undermine global health equity while failing to address why there is a shortage of their own?

So, Is New Zealand Outsourcing Its Healthcare Crisis? Fast-Tracking Foreign Doctors Sparks Debate: Things To Consider

• Is it ethical to recruit from countries with their own shortages? Chile is known to have less medical stuff themselves and many work in under-resourced regions. Are they just pillaging talent from nations that need it more?

• Will these doctors stay? Due to many hurdles, many leave within a few years.

• Why aren’t they training more Kiwi doctors?

The Real Reason Doctors Are Leaving 

While this fast-tracking move may ease the pressure, it raises a troubling question: is NZ becoming too reliant on international recruitment instead of fixing what’s broken domestically?

New Zealand has been in a healthcare staffing crisis for years. Long hours, burnout, low morale and a wave of resignations have driven many of their own trained professionals out of the system or even out of the country. Meanwhile, medical students face limited placements and long pathways to practice. The risk is clear: busy importing talent and ignoring the reasons people are leaving in the first place.

The Better Approach: Fix the System, Not Just the Numbers

If NZ is serious about solving the doctor shortage, they need a bold, systemic change, not just more recruitment drives.

1. Train More Kiwi Doctors

• Expand medical school placements (hundreds of qualified applicants get rejected yearly).

• Forgive student debt for doctors who work in underserved regions (like rural NZ).

• Encourage students to pursue the medicinal field.
  

2. Make NZ a Place Doctors Want to Stay

• Close the pay gap with Australia, if the pay is similar the people will be less tempted to move.

• Improve hospital conditions, reduce burnout, invest in support staff and technology.
  

3. Ethical International Recruitment

If overseas recruitment happen, we should:

• Partner with source countries to ensure the other country does not have shortage.

• Offer real and necessary support (housing assistance, cultural integration programs).
  

Overall, let’s give credit where it’s due, the Government is clearly listening and trying to respond to workforce shortages in a practical way. Welcoming more international doctors is a meaningful move that can ease immediate pressures and bring valuable skills into our health system. It shows that the Government is taking action and that’s definitely towards the right direction. But to truly build a strong, sustainable future, this step must be part of a broader commitment to supporting, retaining and empowering all healthcare workers. With the steady short-term solutions and long-term reforms, New Zealand can create a health system that works better for everyone - doctors, nurses and most importantly, patients.