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In Kerala, a growing wave of young doctors are quitting the medical profession — not due to lack of skill or ambition, but because of burnout caused by heavy workloads and inadequate pay. 

Recent videos shared on social media by fresh MBBS graduates and dentists revealed their struggles. One former doctor’s salary in a private hospital in Bengaluru was under ₹40,000 monthly, yet she found herself doing work equal to that of two doctors. Another dentist reportedly earned only ₹8,000 while working long hours, standing for hours treating patients back to back — a routine that left her emotionally drained. 

Critics argue that medicine was once seen as a calling requiring sacrifice and patience. Some senior doctors point out that they themselves started with low pay and tough work conditions decades ago, but worked hard to build their career. Those who left argue that compassion and dedication should not be exploited — passion does not automatically justify financial and emotional hardship for fresh doctors. 

This trend has sparked widespread public debate across Kerala: Is the system undervaluing its young doctors? Is the medical community putting too much burden on fresh graduates? Or is it simply generational differences — with younger doctors unwilling to accept the hardships older doctors endured? The debate has exposed a widening divide in how medicine is perceived across generations in the state.