Table 1.
Comments about reasons for considering working in medicine outside the UK, percentages and numbers: by survey year.
| Reasons | Survey year(s) |
||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 (N = 1345) | 2015 (N = 1178) | 2011 and 2015 (N = 2523) | |
| Experience abroad* | 41.3 (556) | 25.8 (304) | 34.1 (860) |
| Better abroad | 32.5 (437) | 30.4 (358) | 31.5 (795) |
| National Health Service culture/state/politics* | 10.9 (146) | 43.2 (509) | 26.0 (655) |
| Training/job opportunities* | 26.8 (306) | 11.5 (136) | 17.5 (442) |
| UK pay and conditions* | 7.7 (103) | 21.6 (255) | 14.2 (358) |
| Family reasons | 13.1 (176) | 10.4 (122) | 11.8 (298) |
| Expectations/value* | 5.9 (79) | 15.5 (183) | 10.4 (262) |
| Effect on health/family/work–life balance* | 2.4 (32) | 6.5 (76) | 4.3 (108) |
| Patient care* | 0.7 (9) | 2.5 (29) | 1.5 (38) |
| Lack of support | 1.0 (14) | 1.0 (12) | 1.0 (26) |
| Career change | 0.7 (10) | 0.8 (9) | 0.8 (19) |
| Other | 0.6 (8) | 0.3 (3) | 0.4 (11) |
Percentages in each column add to more than 100% because some doctors cited more than one reason.
*
p < 0.001; significance tests, comparing 2011 and 2015: = 66.7, 340.3, 91.2, 99.8, 62.0, 24.4, 12.4, respectively, for experience abroad, NHS culture/state/politics, training/job opportunities, UK pay and conditions, expectations/value, effect on health/family/work–life balance, patient care.