Americas staring severe shortage of health care professionals

A new report from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), The Health Workforce in the Americas: Regional Data and Indicators, reveals that 14 out of 39 countries in the Americas lack sufficient doctors, nurses, and midwives to meet the health needs of their populations. Without immediate interventions, the Americas could face a deficit of between 600,000 and 2- million health workers by 2030, compromising universal health access and coverage.

“The health workforce is the backbone of our health care systems; without health care workers, it is simply not possible to speak of universal access or universal coverage,” said Dr. Jarbas Barbosa, PAHO Director.

“This report provides us with concrete data to guide investment in training, retention, and decent working conditions, ensuring that health care reaches everyone,” he added.

With an average of 66.57 health workers per 10,000 population, the Region exceeds the WHO benchmark of 44.5. However, major inequalities persist: while countries such as Haiti (6.38) and Honduras (7.13) face critical shortages, Cuba and the United States have almost four times the target number. Factors such as limited training capacity, an ageing workforce, migration (especially in the Caribbean), and unequal distribution widen the gap.

The report examines the situation of the health workforce in the Americas based on eight key occupations—physicians, nurses, midwives, dentists, pharmacists, physical therapists, psychologists, and community health workers —and breaks the information down by country. Among the most relevant findings are aspects related to the availability, distribution, and composition of the workforce.

Nursing, the occupation for which the most data is available, is predominantly female (89.78%), with a density that varies considerably, ranging from 131.5 nurses per 10,000 population in the United States to just 3.84 in Haiti. While the regional average for physicians still shows a slight male majority (51.3%), one-third of countries report more women physicians than men, reflecting an ongoing process of feminization of the profession.

Only 14 countries reported data on psychologists, with the highest ratios reported by Argentina (17.98 per 10 000 population) and Costa Rica (16.85). Despite their essential role in mental health care, data gaps persist. The same is true for community health workers, who are key in primary health care. However, data on these workers are scarce outside Brazil and some Caribbean countries.

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