Healthcare Crisis

Honduras has only 5,000 doctors but needs 23,000 in the public system, according to the Medical College of Honduras, with low pay, salary arrears, and poor working conditions driving emigration to Germany, Spain, England, and other countries.

The president of the IHSS doctors' association says the social-security institute faces a severe crisis driven by government debt exceeding 30 billion lempiras (about $1.2 billion) and another 6 billion lempiras from other sectors, compounded by overcrowding, physician shortages, and no new buildings in over 30 years.