OECD on Indian Workers: Quietly Running the World?

The Global Health System's Hidden Dependency

The OECD's recent International Migration Outlook 2025 report highlights a growing reliance on migrant medical professionals, particularly doctors and nurses from India, within OECD member countries. We're talking about nearly 99,000 Indian-born doctors and 122,400 Indian-born nurses employed across these nations in 2020-21. That's a 76% and a whopping 435% increase, respectively, since 2000-01. These numbers aren't just statistics; they represent a fundamental shift in how healthcare is delivered in developed economies.

But let's be clear: this isn't just a feel-good story about international collaboration. It exposes a structural vulnerability. The OECD report itself notes this dependence is both a "lifeline and a vulnerability." What happens if the flow of Indian medical professionals slows or, worse, reverses? It's a question that OECD countries need to be asking very seriously. Are these nations truly prepared for a scenario where the talent pipeline from India gets constricted, whether through policy changes in India or increased competition from other countries?

The report also distinguishes between "foreign-born" and "foreign-trained" health professionals. The former includes those born outside the country where they work, while the latter refers to those who obtained their primary qualification abroad. In 2021-23, OECD countries had 75,000 India-trained doctors out of 606,000 foreign-trained doctors and 122,000 India-trained nurses out of 733,000 foreign-trained nurses. The UK, US, Canada, and Australia are the biggest destinations. The UK, for instance, relies heavily on India-trained doctors, with them making up 23% of all foreign-trained doctors in the country.

Here's where things get interesting – and where I start to raise an eyebrow. The OECD attributes India's dominance to its large medical education system, English-language training, and targeted bilateral recruitment. All valid points, but they don't fully explain the scale of the migration. Is it solely about opportunity, or are there other factors at play, such as the working conditions and compensation packages offered in OECD countries compared to those in India? I've looked at a lot of these kinds of reports, and it is rare to see such a large dependence on a single source country. Indian doctors and nurses form backbone of global health systems, says OECD report

The Brain Drain Paradox

This influx, however, begs the question of "brain drain." India appears on the WHO’s Health Workforce Support and Safeguards List, which identifies countries facing critical workforce shortages. So, while OECD countries benefit from skilled Indian professionals, India itself potentially suffers from a depletion of its own healthcare resources. It's a classic case of robbing Peter to pay Paul, except Peter is a developing nation struggling to provide adequate healthcare to its own population.

Many OECD countries have eased migration pathways for health professionals, the UK with its Health and Care Worker Visa (though they recently restricted dependents from entry) and Canada with fast-track credential recognition for nurses from certain countries, including India. But even with these openings, licensing and recognition of foreign qualifications remain major bottlenecks. The OECD report points out that "even when migration policies are supportive, delayed or opaque recognition procedures continue to prevent timely labour-market integration." Migrant health workers often end up in lower-skilled positions despite holding advanced credentials. This is an area where real reform could have a dramatic impact.

The Real Cost of Global Healthcare

The OECD report paints a picture of a global healthcare system increasingly reliant on talent from a single nation. While this benefits OECD countries in the short term, it raises serious questions about long-term sustainability and ethical considerations. Is it truly sustainable for developed nations to depend so heavily on a single source of medical professionals? What are the implications for India's own healthcare system? And what happens when the economic incentives shift? I've seen entire industries disrupted by similar dependencies.

The Data Doesn't Lie

This isn't just about economics; it's about people's lives and well-being, both in the developed world and in India. The OECD data exposes a dependency that, while currently functional, has inherent risks that demand serious attention.