عظیم نرس خروج

The Ordem dos Enfermeiros (OE) has received, since the beginning of 2020, 3,364 requests for declarations for the purposes of emigration, with the most recent data indicating that requests have risen again in 2022, totalling 1,221, 308 more than in 2021 ( 913).

Speaking to Lusa agency, the president of the OE, Ana Rita Cavaco, emphasised that the more than 3,300 professionals who left the country between 2020 and the end of 2022 corresponds to the number of nurses trained annually by Portuguese schools.

Since 2015, Ana Rita Cavaco said that around 13,000 nurses enrolled in the Order, but more than 15,000 emigrated during this period.

“This proves to everyone that not only recent graduates emigrate, people with a lot of experience also emigrate, specialist nurses”, stressed the CEO.

Switzerland continues to be the country that receives the most Portuguese nurses, followed by Spain and the United Kingdom, which despite Brexit is still one of the preferred destinations for professionals, says the OE.

“Thus, European countries, which have been carrying out more aggressive recruitment campaigns, continue to be the main destinations for Portuguese nurses, but the United Arab Emirates also receive, from year to year, more and more professionals”, says the OE in a statement.

The Order emphasises that this data demonstrates “the continuation of the trend of emigration of nurses, despite the chronic shortage of nurses in Portugal”, to the point of wanting to hire these professionals “and there are none on the market”.