title: Physicians' Migration: Perceptions of Pakistani Medical Students.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the perceptions of medical students about factors responsible for physicians'migration.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Dow Medical College and Civil Hospital, Karachi, from April to May 2015.
  
  
  METHODS
  Aself-administered structured questionnaire was used including demographic details, attitudes about push and pull factors of migration, and reasons for migrating or not migrating abroad. Final year students and interns were included. Likert scale from 1 to 4 (1=strongly disagree to 4=strongly agree) was used to assess attitudes. Data was analyzed by SPSS version 16.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Atotal of 240 medical students, mostly females (n=181, 75%) (60% final year and 40% interns), participated in the study. Majority wished to go abroad (n=127; 54%) with United States being the favourite destination (n=80; 66.1%) and internal medicine fields being the preferred choice for specialization (n=126; 54%). The major pull factors were better quality of postgraduate education abroad (n=110; 48.2%) and economic prospects (80; 35.2%); while the push factors were a weak healthcare system (n=219; 94.3%), inadequate salary structure (n=205; 88.3%), insecurity (n=219; 93.9%) and increasing religious intolerance in Pakistan (n=183; 78.5%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This survey highlights the continuing trend of physician migration from Pakistan owing to an interplay of various push and pull factors. Majority of our medical students wish to migrate, mainly due to low salaries, poor job structure, and insecurity. Urgent interventions are required to reverse this trend of medical brain-drain.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology Unit II, Dow Medical College, Civil Hospital, Karachi.
authors.forename: Nazli
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hossain
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology Unit II, Dow Medical College, Civil Hospital, Karachi.
authors.forename: Nusrat
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology Unit II, Dow Medical College, Civil Hospital, Karachi.
authors.forename: Tahira
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology Unit II, Dow Medical College, Civil Hospital, Karachi.
authors.forename: Sidra Binte
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Lateef
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D010154:Pakistan; D010465:Perception; D010820:Physicians; D012456:Salaries and Fringe Benefits; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult