Меседж Ukrainian doctors and pharmaceutical workers are “escaping” from Ukraine en masse
This thesis was spread on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that women with medical education began to “escape” from Ukraine en masse, because from October 1, 2023, medical and pharmaceutical workers must register with the military. In support of this thesis, propagandists show alleged data from the State Statistics Service of Ukraine and explain that more than 25 thousand women with medical education allegedly left Ukraine over the past two weeks.
The VoxCheck analysts investigated the case and found that the State Statistics Service does not publish such statistics, and therefore, no data on the migration of doctors and pharmacists simply exists. That is, propagandists came up with this information. After all, migration statistics on the State Statistics Service website have not been updated since January 2022 due to martial law. Experts explained that in Ukraine, at the state level, the migration movement of the population is monitored according to several indicators: the number of arrivals and departures and the corresponding coefficients of these processes. Moreover, such indicators are formed annually, not weekly. And they do not separate out information about the professions of those who arrived and those who left, that is, such data is not collected. Data can be classified by type of area, gender, age, etc.
Also, statistics on the migration movement of the population are published by the State Migration Service of Ukraine. But this body also does not provide information on the distribution of migrants by profession.
Since October 1, 2023, medical and pharmaceutical workers must indeed register with the military, but registration with the military does not mean mobilization or the establishment of restrictions on traveling abroad. The Ministry of Health notes that registration is necessary only to summarize data on the existing reserve of doctors in the country. The travel of this category of women is unlimited.