WHO launches new plan to confront HIV-related health worker shortages
---------------------------------------------------------------------
WHO LAUNCHES NEW PLAN TO CONFRONT HIV-RELATED HEALTH WORKER SHORTAGES
Toronto
The World Health Organization (WHO), in collaboration with the International Labour Organization and the International Organization for Migration, today announced the launch of a coordinated global plan to address a major and often overlooked barrier to preventing and treating HIV/AIDS: the severe shortage of health workers, particularly in developing nations.
Called 'Treat, Train, Retain', the plan is an important component of WHOs overall efforts to strengthen human resources for health and to promote comprehensive national strategies for human resource development across different disease programmes. The plan is also part of WHO's work to promote universal access to HIV/AIDS services. Through its HIV/AIDS Programme, WHO is playing a central role in making the goal of universal access a reality.
Fifty-seven countries, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia (particularly Bangladesh, India, and Indonesia) face crippling shortages of health workers. WHO estimates that more than four million health workers are needed to fill the gap. Sub-Saharan Africa faces the greatest challenges. With 11 percent of the world's population and almost 64 percent of all people living with HIV, the region has only 3 percent of the world's health workers. Globally, health workers are also concentrated in urban areas, leaving shortages in rural areas.
In sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere, the HIV/AIDS epidemic is contributing to health worker shortages. HIV/AIDS is an emerging source of mortality, loss of productivity and demoralisation among health workers. HIV/AIDS also has changed the way young people view health work, making it a less desirable career choice and leading to a lack of health workers trained to prevent and treat AIDS. In addition, many health workers trained in developing world health systems leave their jobs (or countries) for better-paying jobs in wealthy countries, in bigger cities or at non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
--
Claudio Schuftan
mailto:claudio@hcmc.netnam.vn