Dozens of doctors in South Africa cannot find jobs in public hospitals — Daily Maverick

In South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province, dozens of young doctors are unable to find work in public hospitals and clinics after completing their internships and compulsory community service. At the same time, medics already working in the public sector report staff shortages, long patient queues and unfilled vacancies. Daily Maverick reports.

Vacancies remain frozen

Doctor Tholumusa Sibiya, who graduated in 2022, completed a two-year internship at Ngwelezana Hospital and service at Manguzi Hospital, but has been unable to find a position in the public healthcare system since October last year. He works temporary shifts at private medical facilities without a permanent contract.

According to Sibiya’s estimate, more than 100 recently qualified doctors are seeking work in KwaZulu-Natal alone, while other medics put the figure closer to 200. Doctor Raisa Katrada said she had sent CVs to private doctors and hospitals and applied for all available temporary vacancies. According to her, some doctors wait up to three years for employment.

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Lack of funding and staff shortages

Public hospital employees told the publication that positions are not filled after staff leave because of budget cuts. A report by South Africa’s health ombudsman also mentions systemic problems in KwaZulu-Natal medical facilities: persistent staff shortages, frozen vacancies, growing workloads, and shortages of equipment and supplies.

According to a parliamentary response for 2025, the province had approximately 0.38 doctors per 1,000 people. The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health’s annual report for 2025–2026 states that budget cuts substantially limited its ability to fill critically important vacancies for doctors, nurses and other staff.

On June 17, unemployed doctors protested outside the provincial health department building in Pietermaritzburg. They demanded that all vacant doctor positions be advertised and that a long-term employment plan be developed. In a written response, the department said that not all vacancies could be filled due to a lack of funding for the 2026–2027 financial year. After a meeting with doctors’ representatives, the department initially promised to find 20 positions and later increased the number of open posts to 50, according to Sibiya.