MSH & the Crisis in Human Resources for Health
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Shortages of trained health staff are a crisis of epidemic pro-
portions in the developing world. Many health systems are near
collapse due to a large population of HIV patients and a shrink-
ing workforce. According to some figures, 66 percent of graduat-
ing doctors in developing countries eventually emigrate. In the
last three years, Malawi "exported" 20 more nurses than it
graduated. In South Africa, the number of registered pharmacists
has reportedly dropped from over 11,000 at its peak a few years
ago, to less than 9,000. Without addressing this human resource
crisis, development interventions and programs in some of the
poorest countries will remain in danger of collapsing due to a
lack of health staff to deliver services.
To access resources about human capacity development (HCD), a
comprehensive process of creating the political will, capabili-
ties, and management systems to enable governments and organiza-
tions to respond effectively to the human resource crisis,
please visit the new HCD section of Management Sciences for
Health's (MSH's) website: http://www.msh.org/ The "Focus On" Hu-
man Capacity Development section of the website provides infor-
mation on MSH's work in HCD related to -
developing an HCD strategy
http://www.msh.org/what_MSH_does/hcd/strategy.html
addressing policy and financial requirements
http://www.msh.org/what_MSH_does/hcd/policy.html
improving human resource management
http://www.msh.org/what_MSH_does/hcd/hr_management.html
establishing partnerships
http://www.msh.org/what_MSH_does/hcd/partnerships.html
and building leadership
http://www.msh.org/what_MSH_does/hcd/leadership.html
This site also includes links to the following:
* Innovative tools and approaches
* Publications useful in HCD work
* Stories from MSH's field projects
* Key partner websites
MSH is one of eight partners on the new USAID-funded Capacity
Project, which is a global program that seeks to adopt a new
paradigm that considers an integrated and systematic strategy to
assist developing countries address this human resource crisis.
For additional information about MSH's HCD efforts, please con-
tact Mary O'Neil at mailto:moneil@msh.org or MSH's Communica-
tions Office at mailto:development@msh.org
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Management Sciences for Health (MSH) is a leading international
organization dedicated to closing the gap between knowledge and
action in public health. By helping public and private organiza-
tions throughout the world to effectively manage people, medi-
cines, money, and information, MSH contributes to saving lives
and improving health. Working from our US headquarters and more
than 30 country offices, our staff from 65 nations is highly re-
garded for its technical expertise, integrity, and commitment to
making a lasting difference in global health.