Europe has an estimated shortage of 1.2 million doctors, nurses and midwives, not counting other health workers.

Omissions

• The figure is a modelled estimate based on minimum staffing thresholds required for universal health coverage, not a count of vacant posts; it refers to the EU specifically rather than 'Europe' in a broader geographic sense.
• The underlying reference period is 2022 (published in the OECD/European Commission 'Health at a Glance: Europe 2024' report, November 2024), so by the 2026 session date the estimate was already several years old.

Sources

• PrimaryOECD / European Commission — Health at a Glance: Europe 2024Based on minimum staffing thresholds ... shortage of approximately 1.2 million doctors, nurses and midwives in 2022.
• SecondaryEuropean Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) — Healthcare in the EU: shortagesestimates a shortage of 1.2 million doctors, nurses and midwives in the EU as of 2022
• SecondaryEuronews — Aging Europe faces a serious shortage of health workforceRapidly aging EU countries have an estimated shortage of some 1.2 million doctors, nurses and midwives.