Growing Demand for Health Professionals Worldwide

Growing Demand for Health Professionals Worldwide
Demographic and epidemiological trends in both industrialized
and developing countries have led to an increasing demand for skilled health workers and will continue to do so. While countries in the North have to deal with an aging population and a greater share
of chronic diseases, countries in the South are carrying
a large burden of disease stemming from poverty
and epidemics. HIV/AIDS in particular is a threat to
health systems in developing countries as it is increasing
the workload and at the same time diminishing
the workforce. Worldwide gaps in human resources for health result of a history of under-investment and deficient workforce planning. Not only is
there a shortage of workers in total; their geographical
distribution and the skill mix within professional
teams is often inadequate as well. While migrant
professionals help to reduce disparities between rural
and urban areas within industrialized countries, their
movement increases the disparities between countries. For example, 33% of doctors and 10% of nurses working in the United Kingdom
trained abroad. In Germany, this accounts for 17,318
doctors and 26,284 nurses, equivalent to 6% and 3%
of the respective total workforce.
While the importance of workforce planning in the health sector is increasingly recognized, it is hampered
by a weak knowledge base. This is concerning the scale
of the phenomenon as well as the effectiveness and efficiency
of planning tools and policies.