Medical brain-drain and quality healthcare delivery in African countries

The study carefully examines the effect of medical brain-drain on quality healthcare delivery from 2001 to 2023 on 35 selected African countries. Employing a quantitative approach, the study analyzed secondary data to assess the relationships between medical brain-drain (proxy by Physicians Density Per Capita, Gross Domestic Product Per Capita, Domestic General Government Health Expenditure, Remittances, Government Effectiveness, and Infant Mortality Rate (a proxy for quality healthcare delivery). While previous studies offer invaluable insights, lacunas remain in examining the effect of medical brain-drain on quality healthcare delivery in Africa. A panel of selected African countries for the period between 2001 and 2023 was adopted using Generalized Methods of Moment estimation technique. Findings indicated that a percent rise in PDPC resulting from non-migration of medical workers resulted into a decrease in infant deaths by 0.290 percent, while a percent rise in Gross Domestic Product Per Capita, Remittance, and Domestic General Government Health Expenditure cut infant deaths by − 0.150, − 0.025, and 0.044 percents while the result of Remittances was not statistically significant. Contrarily, Government Effectiveness result shows 1.900, indicating that a percent rise in government ineffectiveness raises infant deaths by 1.9 percent. The followings are suggested for African leaders to mitigate medical brain-drain: improved working conditions for health workers, careers professional development programme, raising the quotas of medical students across medical schools, annual economic growth that trickles-down to human and infrastructural development, among others. Conclusively, if all these are carefully implemented by African leaders, medical brain-drain syndrome to certain extent will be cut, and this will guarantee better workable African countries’ healthcare systems. This study is authentic and innovative as much study has not been put forth in the public healthcare sector in Africa regarding this occurrence.