London job fair recruits British doctors for Israeli healthcare
A 2020 initiative aimed at securing 2,000 new physicians by 2029 hosted a recruitment event in the UK on Sunday.
By Ethan Cook ·
Israel's government agencies held a recruitment event in London on Sunday to encourage British doctors to move to the country. The medical job fair, named MedEx UK, was organized by Nefesh B’Nefesh, the Jewish Agency for Israel, and the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration. The event took place at a Jewish community centre in London.
The drive is part of the International Medical Aliyah Program, or Imap, which launched in 2020. The program's stated goal is to bring 2,000 doctors to Israel by 2029. Officials aim to counter staff shortages by streamlining the medical licensing process for foreign nationals.
Attendees received emails detailing opportunities to meet with representatives from Israeli hospitals and health funds. The emails also promoted on-site YAEL Hebrew proficiency tests, which are required for medical licensing. Leaflets distributed at the event featured medical providers such as Terem and Clalit. A Terem flyer listed medical centres in the West Bank settlements of Modiin, Beit Shemesh, Ma’ale Adumim, and Beitar Illit.
An activist from Jewish Anti-Zionist Action who attended the event reported that representatives from Leumit Health Services were present. Leumit operates medical centres and pharmacies in 30 communities across the occupied West Bank. The attendee list also included the head of obstetrics and gynaecology in the Israeli military. The activist noted that prominent professors flew in for the day and returned the next.
The recruitment effort addresses a physician exodus from Israel. A recent survey by the Israeli Medical Association found that 1,369 doctors left the country for over a year between 2023 and 2025. In response, the government introduced financial incentives and regulatory changes. In 2025, the Ministry of Health lowered the experience threshold for a licensing exam exemption from 14 years to 10 years.
In 2026, the government allocated up to 240 million NIS, roughly $76.7 million, for international medical recruitment. This push coincides with measures that restrict Palestinian doctors from entering the system. The 2019 Yatziv Reform revoked recognition for medical degrees from non-OECD countries and West Bank universities. This affects many Eastern European nations where Palestinians study medicine.
Shani Bar Tuvia, director of the health policy department at Physicians for Human Rights Israel, stated that Palestinians currently make up about 9 percent of medical students in Israel. She explained that this figure cannot support the ministry's report that Arabs and Druze constituted almost 45 percent of newly licensed medics in 2023. Bar Tuvia said the ministry is aware the Yatziv reform will reduce licensed doctors and that they must compensate for the disqualified institutions.
The ministry has also opened new medical schools to train domestic students. These include facilities at Ariel University, located in a settlement, and Reichman University, the country's only private university. Nefesh B’Nefesh, the Jewish Agency, the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, and Clalit did not respond to requests for comment before publication.
