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According to the director of PAHO, the shortfall in health assistants in America already affects 600 000 workers.
Carissa F. Etienne, the Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), said that the shortage of health personnel in the Americas already affects more than 600 000 workers, affecting access to health care.
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The most affected people in this scenario are those living in rural and underserved areas of the region. The PAHO Director recognized at the 75th World Health Assembly, during the discussion of the 2022-2030 Action Plan "Working for Health," the "enormous sacrifice and contribution of health workers in the Americas" during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The unwavering resilience of our health workers is a testimony to their commitment to serve, save lives and ensure health for all," said Etienne. She added that during the biggest waves of the pandemic, "task shifting and task sharing saved lives," and that "patient care delivery was facilitated by digital transformation."
PAHO Director said that the organization had prepared more than 900 000 health workers to control and manage the COVID-19 pandemic, services continuity, and vaccine deployment during this period, referring to this worrying situation. She added that the organization "can no longer ignore long-standing deficiencies in health systems," which hurts the capacity of the health workforce to provide quality, uninterrupted care.
Con el fallecimiento de casi 115 mil trabajadores de la salud por #Covid19 en el #Mundo, Carissa F. Etienne, Directora de la @opsoms, dijo hay un déficit en Las Américas de 600 mil médicos. ���� #AgenciaMxNoticias https://t.co/FyQ0pFKUKv
— Agencia Mexiquense de Noticias (@AMXNoticias) May 28, 2022
With the death of almost 115,000 health workers due to Covid19 in the World, Carissa F. Etienne, Director of opsoms, said there is a deficit in the Americas of 600,000 doctors.
PAHO Director highlighted the migrations as one of the migrations of health workers or wealthier countries as one of the reasons for the deficiencies, bad management of plan between the Education and Labor sectors; and insufficient emphasis on interprofessional and ongoing education.
"Investing in health systems and a fit-for-purpose health workforce constitutes a priority for the Americas," said Etienne, adding that the organization expects to work with the Member States, partners, and WHO to develop "a transformative agenda in human resources for health in the Americas."
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