Sri Lanka’s healthcare system faces a major crisis

Lady Ridgeway hospital is one of Sri Lanka's biggest healthcare facilities for children

Sri Lanka is facing a major crisis with its healthcare system as more than 1,500 doctors and specialists have left the country for overseas jobs in the last year.

This has led to the closing of at least 40 hospitals while the remaining operational hospitals are under a lot of pressure.

Dr. Chamil Wijesinghe, spokesperson for the Government Medical Officers’ Association, says that 5,000 more doctors might leave, making the shortage even worse.

The reason for all of this is that Sri Lanka’s economy is not doing well and Doctors are not getting paid enough, and there aren’t many good opportunities for them in Sri Lanka, he further explained.