Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
World
Natasha May in Bangkok

‘We feel like we are failing’: Myanmar doctor speaks out as health system teeters on ‘brink of collapse’

The wreckage of a hospital in Rakhine state after a Myanmar military airstrike in December 2025.
The wreckage of a hospital in Rakhine state after a military airstrike in December 2025. Years of civil war has left Myanmar’s health sector on the verge of collapse. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

When Myanmar’s junta seized power in a 2021 coup, Elle* and a fellow doctor fled to the jungle to provide aid to the resistance movement, one of 45,000 healthcare workers to lend their support.

Elle does not regret her decision, she supports the pro-democracy movement and later married the doctor with whom she escaped, but years of sacrifice have taken a toll. She treats patients from refugee camps at a clinic but does not earn enough to send money back to support her parents in their old age, which is her greatest wish.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.