A comprehensive health labour market framework for universal health coverage

Abstract

In many developed and developing countries, progress towards attaining UHC is hindered by the lack of a health workforce large enough and with the proper skills to deliver quality services to the entire population. Several factors accentuate the problems associated with health worker shortages, especially in low- and middle-income countries: maldistribution and migration of the workforce, inappropriate training, poor supervision, unregulated dual practice, imbalances in skill-mix composition, and reduced productivity and performance.1 Such problems are, however, not limited to low- and middle-income countries; many high-income countries are likely to face severe shortages of health workers because of budget cuts for social services resulting from the global economic downturn. The ageing of the population puts further pressure on health systems by increasing the demand for health care. Moreover, the changing dynamics of workforce migration, such as the increased exodus of workers from one developing country to another, pose a challenge for global health labour markets.2