The Association of Specialist Doctors, which says that most of the specialists in this country have left the country, has further revealed that the only specialist in pediatric radiology in the country has also left the country.
They say that the limited specialist doctors in the fields of line cardiologists, pediatric neurologists, pediatric cardiologists, emergency medicine specialists and pediatric psychiatrists have left the country by now.
Specialist Dr Ashoka Gunaratne, Media Spokesperson of the Association of Specialist Doctors, states that it is estimated that the health sector in Sri Lanka needs about 4000 specialist doctors for the coming years 2024-2025, but there are currently only 2000 specialist doctors in the country.
He points out that although about 30 doctors were trained as specialists to work in emergency departments, about 20 of them have already left the country.
Dr Gunaratne states that although the estimate of anesthesiologists for the year 2024-2025 is 289, there are currently only 155 anesthesiologists in the country, and thirty of them have left the country.
He emphasizes that by next year, there will be a group of about only one hundred anesthesiologists left in this country.
