1,369 Israeli Doctors Leaving: 5 Mistakes New Olim Make in Healthcare Crisis

October 24, 2026, Jerusalem — Between 2023 and 2025, 1,369 doctors left Israel for at least a year, compared with 705 between 2013 and 2015, a 94% increase. The departures over three years exceed the entire medical staff of a large Israeli hospital. Shaare Zedek employs roughly 1,000 doctors, Soroka about 900 and Shamir about 630. This is not a story about brain drain the way most media frames it. It is a story about miscalculation—about Israeli society failing to retain its best medical talent, and about new olim misunderstanding the real crisis beneath the headlines.

Mistake 1: Believing the 'Brain Drain' Narrative Tells the Whole Story

New olim often hear warnings about a brain drain and assume it means Israeli doctors are fleeing for higher salaries or better lives. That is incomplete. A researcher stressed that time abroad does not necessarily indicate permanent departure, since many physicians leave for advanced training, fellowships or research. "For most of the doctors I know who left, there is actually some decline in status, salary or conditions. There are people who left management positions in Israel and moved here into nonmanagement roles. This is not exactly a brain drain, but leaving in pain against a different backdrop."

What matters: many doctors are not chasing higher pay—they are fleeing instability, security anxiety, and burnout. A psychiatrist speaking at an emergency meeting said higher salaries were not the main motivation for many departing physicians. Concerns about personal safety, their children's futures and professional exhaustion were also driving doctors away. New olim who arrive thinking the healthcare system is simply underfunded or undersized miss the psychological and emotional dimensions of the crisis.

Mistake 2: Underestimating the Exodus of Senior Specialists

Doctors aged 45 and older accounted for about 20% of those who left between 2023 and 2025, roughly one in five. A decade earlier, they accounted for 14%, or about one in seven. This is the real danger. Young doctors travel abroad for fellowships and often return. Senior specialists do not.

New olim frequently assume Israeli hospitals can absorb losses among junior staff because new medical graduates will replace them. But the highest proportional loss was recorded in ophthalmology, dermatology and ear, nose and throat medicine. A total of 116 doctors left those fields, equivalent to 6.2% of all physicians in those specialties and 9.4% of those under 60. When an experienced ophthalmologist with 20 years of practice leaves, no medical school can replace that expertise in a generation. Wait times for those specialties will spike, and new olim working in healthcare will bear the pressure.

Mistake 3: Assuming Geographic Disparity Is Only a Periphery Problem

Tel Aviv has the highest doctor-to-population ratio in Israel, and yet the Tel Aviv district recorded the largest number of departures at 429 over the three years, equal to 5.4 percent of all physicians in the district and 7.4 percent of those under 60. This catches new olim off-guard. Many assume resource shortages are worst in the Negev or Galilee. In reality, the crisis is nationwide.

The Tel Aviv District recorded the largest number of departures, with 429 doctors leaving between 2023 and 2025. The Central District recorded 290, followed by Haifa with 190, Jerusalem with 132 and the Southern District with 125. New olim who move to Tel Aviv hoping for better healthcare access may discover that their own doctor is on a waiting list to leave the country.

Mistake 4: Not Distinguishing Between Temporary Assignment and Permanent Departure

When an Israeli doctor tells you she is spending a year in Boston for a fellowship, it does not mean she is gone forever. But a 2024 study of 297 Israeli physicians who pursued fellowships abroad found that 156, or 52.5%, were living outside Israel at the time of the survey. Forty-eight of those physicians had completed their fellowships and remained abroad. Among those physicians who remained abroad, 69% reported medium or low confidence that they would return.

New olim need to understand: intentions change. Israeli physicians and scientists leave the country for fellowships, postdoctoral work, medical school and research jobs that can last several years. Overseas hospitals and institutions may offer them positions, salaries can be higher and their children begin building lives abroad. By the time they consider returning, a temporary move may have become permanent. If you are building a career in Israel's healthcare system, expect that colleagues who depart for training may never return.

Mistake 5: Overlooking the Acceleration Since October 2023

The data is stark. The average annual number of physicians leaving Israel from the Clalit healthcare network rose from nine before 2019 to 33 since 2023, representing an increase of more than three and a half times. The rise was particularly pronounced in community medicine, where the average number of doctors departing annually increased sixfold, from three to 18.

New olim often arrive with pre-October 2023 assumptions about Israel's healthcare stability. But the system is under strain that did not exist three years ago. Economists had warned since 2023 of an accelerating departure of skilled professionals amid Israel's political and security turmoil. Concerns first emerged during the government's judicial overhaul push and intensified after the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks and the war that followed. If your child needs surgery or your elderly parent requires cancer treatment, the wait time is longer than it was in 2022—and it is growing longer.

Specialties Hit Hardest: A Comparison Table

Understanding which medical fields are most affected helps new olim plan their own care and navigate the healthcare system intelligently:

New olim should confirm with their kupat cholim (health fund) which specialties have short wait times in their region, and plan accordingly. For elective procedures, book consultations 3–6 months in advance.

Why This Matters for Your First Year in Israel

The healthcare exodus is not a distant policy problem. It affects your life directly. Israel suffers from an ongoing shortage of physicians and active nurses compared with other high-income countries. Israel has 3.5 active physicians per 1,000 population, compared with an OECD average of 3.9, and only 5.57 active nurses per 1,000 population, compared with an OECD average of 9.5.

When you file your teudat zehut (identity document) and enroll in a health fund, you are entering a system already under stress. Emergency rooms have longer wait times. Specialist consultations are scheduled months ahead. If your child gets sick or a parent's condition worsens, you may face delays that would be unthinkable in North America or Western Europe.

New olim often arrive expecting Israeli healthcare to function exactly as it did when they read articles from 2019 or earlier. It does not. The system is holding together, but margins are tightening fast.

What New Olim Should Do Now

Register early with your chosen health fund. Do not delay. Get assigned to a family medicine physician now, even if you feel healthy. Waiting lists for primary care are growing.

Know your health fund's waiting times by specialty. Before you need care, call and ask: How long is the wait for a dermatologist? A cardiologist? A surgeon for elective procedures? This information guides your planning.

Consider supplemental private insurance. If you have means, supplemental coverage for elective procedures and specialists can spare you months of waiting. Many olim find this cost-effective compared to the stress of delays.

Expect that doctors you meet may leave. If you build a relationship with a physician, do not assume she will be there in two years. Get her clinical notes and recommendations in writing. Transition planning matters.

For the healthcare system itself, there is no simple fix. Researchers said the current numbers alone do not yet pose a direct threat to the Israeli economy, but warned that the trend could become far harder to reverse if it continues. They described the danger as a possible snowball effect in which political, economic or security shocks encourage more highly skilled professionals to leave, and each departure increases the likelihood of further departures. The system needs policy intervention—higher physician salaries, better working conditions, mental health support for healthcare workers, and structural reforms. But that is a conversation for policymakers. New olim must navigate the reality as it exists.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How many Israeli doctors has actually left permanently?
A: The Tel Aviv University study counted 1,369 doctors who spent at least a year abroad between 2023–2025. However, some return. Even after accounting for Israeli physicians who returned home after spending time abroad, the net loss reached 509 doctors between 2023 and 2024 alone. Think of it as: roughly 500 net permanent departures per year in the past two years, compared to about 100 annually in the decade before 2023.

Q: Will the healthcare system collapse?
A: No, but it is under real strain. The report shows that 26% of specialist doctors in Israel are over the age of 67 and nearing retirement, compared to 16% in 2010. Over the next 5–10 years, retirements will combine with emigration to create a serious shortage. Government planning is underway, but execution is uncertain.

Q: Are doctors really leaving for political reasons, or is it just money?
A: Both, but not in equal measure. Doctors cited security concerns, family circumstances, professional advancement and better career opportunities abroad among the reasons for leaving. Security and family stability appear to matter more than salary alone. Many departing physicians actually take pay cuts to leave.

Q: Should I pursue a medical career in Israel as a new oleh?
A: The field is competitive but not closed. Israel still trains new physicians and welcomes qualified olim with medical credentials. However, understand that in 2024, only 28% of newly licensed physicians were trained in Israel. If you are a foreign-trained doctor, your credentials will face scrutiny and licensing may take time. Confirm with the Health Ministry about your specific qualifications before moving.

For traders watching Israel's healthcare workforce, Nefesh B'Nefesh tracks professional immigration flows; their data shows that healthcare workers are moving to Israel at record pace, but they cannot yet offset the departures of Israeli-trained specialists. This asymmetry is the real story.