The Ministry of Health (MoH) has released a memo detailing its need for doctors and other technical medical personnel for placement in new hospitals and clinics that are soon to operate, according to several informed sources. The memo has been submitted to the Civil Service Commission (CSC) for approval.
Despite the government’s plan to completely Kuwaitize all labour sectors in Kuwait by 2023, there is still a huge gap that needs to be filled in terms of manpower in hospitals and other healthcare settings as of the time being.
MoH Looks to Hire More Expat Doctors, Nurses and Staff Despite Kuwaitization Plans of the Gov’t
As per the MoH’s memo, at least 500 doctors and more than 1,500 nurses, medical support and technical medical staff such as radiology technicians from India, the Philippines and other Asian countries are needed to fill in the growing healthcare demands in Kuwait.
The sources mentioned that these figures do not include contractual employees from specialized companies offering additional nursing and support staff in Kuwait hospitals.
In other news, the MoH has begun laying off expatriates holding administrative posts in favour of Kuwaiti nationals, leaving only a few number of expats in this sector until it becomes completely Kuwaitized in the next two years.
Regarding this matter, the MoH had repeatedly explained to the CSC that it would not be possible to completely Kuwaitize their healthcare staff (doctors and nurses) within the next five years as the agency had required because it will take at least 10 years for Kuwait graduates to fill in the needed positions, and by then, the staff will not have sufficient experience and expertise which many of the outsourced medical personnel currently possess.
At present, there are around 80,000 expatriates from various fields working in the government. The policies of the government on Kuwaitization directly impact the livelihood of expats currently working in the Gulf State and pose challenging implications for those who are considering to work here. As of recent, the government has already implemented a series of laws which directly affect expatriates working in various sectors.