In 2017, more than 22,500 physicians practicing in France received degrees abroad, compared to 14,000 in 2010. An increase which offset the decline in the number of practitioners.
Over the past 7 years, the number of physicians graduating abroad but practicing in France has increased by 4 points, reveals the new interactive mapping of the National Council of the Order of Physicians (Cnom). This tool provides a detailed assessment of medical demography according to specialty, region, mode of practice or even gender, and makes it possible to better measure disparities in the territories.
And for the first time, the Order presents precise data on the number of doctors graduating abroad and their installation in the territory. In 2017, nearly 22,500 practitioners exercising a regular activity (excluding replacements and retirees) graduated in the European Union (EU) or outside the EU.
Among the 196,000 active doctors, foreign doctors represent around 11% of the workforce, against 7% in 2010.
These practitioners trained outside French universities have come to compensate for the unreplaced retirements and the lack of doctors in certain regions affected by medical desertification.
In the Ile-de-France region, more than 4,100 qualified doctors in France left between 2010 and 2017. During the same period, more than 2,000 foreign practitioners settled. The same trend is observed in Center-Val de Loire and Auvergne Rhône-Alpes (see tables below).
Source: Number of physicians in regular activity according to the origin of the diploma in 2017, Cnom interactive mapping
Source: Number of physicians in regular activity according to the origin of the diploma in 2010, Cnom interactive mapping
On the other hand, Corsica or Brittany saw few doctors holding a French diploma leaving their practice, while the arrivals of foreign practitioners increased little. The latter represent barely 3% of the number of doctors in these regions. Nevertheless, in the years to come, this source of new physicians could be useful, due to many retirements.
Because the data collected by the Cnom are formal: the number of active doctors has continued to decrease in recent years. While in 2010, there were 346 doctors per 100,000 inhabitants, there are still just over 330 in 2017. Demographics at half mast which mainly concerns general practitioners.
.