The density of well being staff is crucial to attaining common well being protection and well being emergency preparedness and response. But, the African area has the bottom density of well being staff per 10,000 inhabitants with a projected 5.3 million well being employee scarcity by 2030.
To assist deal with the looming shortages of well being workforce and the related challenges of funding, the World Well being Group (WHO) and companions convened a regional coverage dialogue on funding and safety of well being and care staff in Africa.
The intention of the dialogue is to carry collectively members states, traders and companions to attract on classes realized to find out key well being workforce funding rules and alternatives and discover the function of the sub-regional our bodies in strengthening well being workforce investments and safety of the well being and care staff (HCWs).
Talking on the opening of the dialogue in Accra, the WHO Consultant to Ghana, Dr Francis Kasolo famous that investing within the well being workforce will develop Common Well being Protection, strengthen well being safety, fairness, youth, and ladies’s financial empowerment. He, due to this fact, known as for pressing motion by stakeholders to speed up funding in well being workforce.
“Nations ought to enhance well being prioritization within the public funds to extend funding in well being workforce,” Dr Kasolo said. “Donors and companions can and also needs to play a key function in strengthening investments within the well being workforce”.
Dr Francis Kasolo additional known as for funding in occupational well being and security and social safety of well being and care staff to enhance effectivity and to scale back well being workforce migration out of Africa.
“Nations must safe nationwide or sub-national mechanisms for buying and supplying private protecting tools,” said Dr Kasolo. “They need to take steps to stop and handle well being staff stress and burnout, while guaranteeing that each one well being staff have entry to a medical insurance”.
The COVID-19 pandemic strengthened the very important significance of sustaining current workforce budgets and leveraging long-term sustainable home and exterior companion investments within the well being workforce to make sure sufficient well being staff are attracted, deployed, protected and retained the place they’re wanted and with the abilities, help, motivation, and tools to do their jobs safely.
In his remarks, Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Well being, Alhaji Mahama Asei Seini known as for a paradigm shift in investing higher and smarter in Africa’s well being workforce to place the continent on the trail to reaching common well being protection.
“There could be no higher time to spend money on well being workforce. Investments in well being workforce will shield weak populations from the shocks of present crises and enhance well being entry,” added Alhaji Mahama Asei Seini,
The regional dialogue introduced collectively 75 members from 26 nations, regional and sub-regional financial communities together with the African Union, Financial Group of West African States (ECOWAS), West African Financial and Financial Union (WAEMU), Southern African Growth Group (SADC) and Financial, Financial Group of Central Africa (CEMAC) and different companions to share experiences on the well being workforce funding and safety methods carried out since 2018.