Health workforce

The health workforce is the backbone of every health system, but there are critical gaps. According to current projections, the Eastern Mediterranean Region faces a shortage of 2.1 million doctors, nurses and midwives by 2030. There are significant disparities in the Region, with the density of physicians, nurses and midwives ranging widely.

Investing in the health workforce not only increases life expectancy, but also creates jobs and supports economic and social development.

WHO’s flagship initiative seeks to build a resilient, fit-for-purpose and sustainable health workforce across the Region to achieve universal health coverage, health-related SDGs and health security by 2030, while promoting equitable occupational opportunities and protecting health professionals from harm. To achieve this, the flagship proposes actions to increase investment in health workforce, scaling up and retaining the workforce for primary care and essential public health functions, and establishing a regional health workforce collaborative.

Regional flagship initiative 2: Investing in a resilient health workforce

Regional flagship initiative: Investing in a resilient health workforce

Regional dialogue on diaspora engagement in health in the Eastern Mediterranean Region

The WHO Regional Office for Eastern Mediterranean, in collaboration with the IOM Regional Office for the Middle East and North Africa will host a regional dialogue on diaspora engagement in health in the Region on 28 June 2022. This is the first session in a series of regional dialogues as part of collaborative plans between the two organizations to maintain a continuous dialogue on international mobility of health professionals in the Region. The event will be hybrid, held in the WHO Regional Office in Cairo and virtually.

Register here

WHO Regional Office for Eastern Mediterranean recognizes and appreciates the untiring efforts and services of all health workers , especially in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, with a Health Workers Recognition Award at the occasion of 2021 as the International Year of Health and Care Workers, for their outstanding contribution. We congratulate the awardees for their outstanding contribution to improving health services and strengthening health workforce in the Region.

Leadership
Dr Maryna Doumit
Nurse, Lebanon

Service Delivery
Ms Hinda Ali
Nurse/Midwife, Somalia

Service Delivery
Dr May El Meraisi and the COVID-19 mental health Helpline Team
Clinical psychologist, Qatar

Health Professionals Education
Prof Hossam Hamdy
Medical doctor, Egypt

Year of the Health and Care Workers 2021

health-workers-celebrated

2021 has been designated as the International Year of Health and Care Workers in appreciation and gratitude for their unwavering dedication in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. WHO is launching a year-long campaign, under the theme – Protect. Invest. Together. It highlights the urgent need to invest in health workers for shared dividends in health, jobs, economic opportunity and equity.

Key dates for advocacy

World Health Worker Week: 5–9 April
World Health Day: 7 April
International Day of the Midwife: 5 May
International Nurses Day: 12 May

COVID-19

Health workers are at the forefront of the response to COVID-19, both as service providers and as high-risk groups for contracting the disease. The rapidly increasing workload has resulted in shortages in the health workforce as well as producing a highly stressful working environment with long working hours, psychological distress, fatigue and occupational burnout.

The WHO Regional Office has developed an interim guidance note to guide actions. A number of other guidance notes and tools are also available to support actions.

Health workforce response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Guidance for health workers

Surge planning tools for visualizing acute and intensive care capacity needs over time and planning of human resources for health systems

WHO Academy mobile application

Health workforce country snapshots

The health workforce snapshots were developed to provide a brief overview of the health workforce situation in each country of the Eastern Mediterranean Region. The snapshots are based on quantitative and qualitative data, highlighting key health workforce issues in countries.

Country snapshots