Investing in human resources for health: the need for a paradigm shift

Practice choices of clinical associates: Policy realisation or practical reality?

“…[10] Health professionals have a choice to practise in either the public or the private sector after graduation and completing compulsory community service. In order to address the shortage of health professionals in the public sector and to promote a diversified workforce, [13] a range of MLHWs has been created to retain skills in the public sector in general and in rural communities, with their unfavourable ratio of nurses and doctors, in particular. The creation of this cadre of health workers in SA is viewed as a country-specific, long-term system-building strategy [13] to improve the delivery of district health services, and not just a short-term solution to health workforce shortages.…”

Tackling health workforce challenges to universal health coverage: setting targets and measuring progress

“…Feng Zhao et al discuss in an editorial in this theme issue how to maximize the returns of external financing for HRH. 26 HRH benchmarks should influence the planning, management, support and monitoring of health systems. They should also be reflected in the setting of the targets used -at the national and global level -to track progress towards UHC and the health priorities of the post-2015 development agenda.…”

Human resources for universal health coverage: from evidence to policy and action

“…In settings where external support is still required, the impact of development assistance for HRH development can be maximized through more strategic targeting. 18 Only systemic action can address deep-seated challenges in the area of HRH; only sustained political commitment can, in turn, provide a basis for such action. By linking the evidence to the policies and politics surrounding health workforce development, this theme issue provides a foundation for the Third Global Forum on Human Resources for Health and, more generally, for a health workforce discourse instrumental in the pursuit of UHC.…”