Allied health manpower in Kuwait: issues and answers

This article focuses on the salient issues and problems regarding allied health manpower in Kuwait, an oil-rich Gulf country. The health system in Kuwait has expanded very rapidly since the country's independence 29 years ago. A major feature of the health system is its heavy reliance on expatriate workers, constituting 80% of all doctors and over 90% of all nurses. Local training facilities have started producing some of the required allied health professionals. Continued shortages of indigenous allied health professionals are, however, inevitable in most areas. The presence of a highly diverse expatriate workforce raises serious problems, concerning worker conflict, differential skills and competencies, and adjustment to the Kuwaiti culture. Standardizing local training facilities, curricular expansion to accommodate emerging health concepts, and improving the system of hiring expatriates are needed.