This paper outlines the severity and complexity of the Human Resources (HR) crisis in sub-Saharan Africa and criticises donor neglect of the issues. The document was prepared as a background document for a World Bank/World Health Organization meeting on Building Strategic Partnership in Education in Health in Africa.
Human Resources
The Health Sector Human Resource crisis in Africa: An issues paper
Support for Analysis and Research in Africa (SARA), USAID
Estimating health workforce needs for antiretroviral therapy in resource-limited settings
Efforts to increase access to life-saving treatment, including antiretroviral therapy (ART), for people living with HIV/AIDS in resource-limited settings has been the growing focus of international efforts. One of the greatest challenges to scaling up will be the limited supply of adequately trained human resources for health, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other skilled providers. As national treatment programmes are planned, better estimates of human resource needs and improved approaches to assessing the impact of different staffing models are critically needed. However there have been few systematic assessments of staffing patterns in existing programmes or of the estimates being used in planning larger programmes.
Harare Recruits 100 Nurses
The Herald, Harare
Harare City Council has recruited 100 nurses to beef up its depleted nursing staff following the departure of several health personnel for greener pastures within the region and overseas. According to the latest full commission minutes, the nurses filled in all the vacant positions for State Registered Nurses. Harare has been losing nurses on a monthly basis to other more paying institutions outside the country.
Home Based Carers Get Training in Namibia
New Era, Windhoek
Close to 30 Home Based Carers from the Andara community in the north are undergoing a four-week training of trainers course being held by the Johanniter-Hilfswerk in Namibia. More than 16 000 Namibians have succumbed to HIV-related complications since the first case was detected in the country in 1986. With over 250 000 people infected with the virus, it is clear that HIV/Aids is the leading cause of death in Namibia.
Integrating migration and development policies - challenges for ACP-EU cooperation
European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM) (2005)
This paper examines the role of migration in economic, social and political development in Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific (ACP). Following the inclusion of a migration clause (article 13) in the political dimensions chapter of the Cotonou Agreement, migration issues have come onto the EU's development agenda. However, there has been debate as to whether migration is a "development issue" and if it should be addressed through development cooperation. This paper argues that migration is an important aspect of economic and social development and needs to be addressed as a development issue and needs to be addressed from an ACP as well as an EU standpoint.
Further details: /newsletter/id/31291
Is There any Solution to the "Brain Drain" of Health Professionals and Knowledge from Africa?
African public health care systems suffer from significant "brain drain" of its health care professionals and knowledge as health workers migrate to wealthier countries such as Australia, Canada, USA, and the United Kingdom. Knowledge generated on the continent is not readily accessible to potential users on the continent. Advocates are increasingly discussing not just the pull factors but also the "grab" factors emanating from the developed nations. In order to control or manage the outflow of vital human resources from the developing nations to the developed ones, various possible solutions have been discussed. The moral regard to this issue cannot be under-recognized. However, the dilemma is how to balance personal autonomy, right to economic prosperity, right to personal professional development, and the expectations of the public in relation to adequate public health care services in the developing nations.
New Doctors Coming
New Era, Windhoek
Ten newly graduated Namibian medical doctors will this week be commissioned into service by the Ministry of Health and Social Services, the Health Minister Richard Kamwi said at a recent meeting with the community here. At times, the Government had to rely on friendly countries such as Cuba and others for medical personnel. He urged parents to encourage their children to take subjects such as mathematics and science in order to qualify for medical training.
The quality of migration services delivery in South Africa
Southern African Migration Project (SAMP)
The South African Department of Home Affairs (DHA) is responsible for the implementation and management of migration policy and legislation, as well as the registration of births, marriages and deaths and the issuing of identity documents and passports. It is often criticised in the media and in private conversation for being administratively inefficient, cumbersome and unwieldy. The Southern African Migration Project (SAMP) therefore proposed to test current perceptions of the Department through a study.
The Supply of Physician Services in OECD Countries
Equidad listserv : PAHO
The delivery of an appropriate quantity and quality of health care in an efficient way requires, among other things, matching the supply with the demand for the services of physicians, over time. Such matching has led to very different levels of physicians per million population across OECD countries ; because of variations, among other things, in: morbidity and mortality, health expenditure as a share of GDP and the design of health systems. Most OECD countries experience inequities in the geographical distribution of their physician workforce. This article discusses how, to tackle this difficulty, a mix of educational policies, regulatory policies and financial policies has been used with some success in a number of countries.
Training health professionals in palliative care
Lessons from South Africa
Palliative care should be an integral part of every health care professional's role. A key aspect of palliative care training involves raising the awareness of health care professionals, service providers and users. Palliative care should not just be seen as the compassionate care of dying patients but as an active discipline including assessing and treating pain and other problems. Health care workers need specific training to be able to offer quality palliative care to their patients.