Africa
Human resources: international context: Chapter 6 of the South African Health Review 2005
Local management of health services needed to address international migration of health workers
Authors:
D. Sanders; B. Lloyd
Publisher:
Health Systems Trust, South Africa, 2005
This chapter, from the South African Health Review 2005, reviews human resources for health in South Africa from an international perspective. It highlights the vast inequities in global and regional distribution of health workers and briefly examines those factors affecting human resource development. The authors highlight how international migration of health workers is affected by push factors, including the impact of HIV and AIDS, and poor working conditions. It is also affected by pull factors, such as underproduction of health workers and aggressive recruitment. The authors go on to explain how the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) threatens to aggravate the brain drain from public to private and from developing to developed countries.
The authors suggest that developing countries must look at local solutions for human resource requirements. Mid-level workers and community health workers can assist in improving access to health and related services and are less likely to migrate. Countries need to ensure that the curricula and training of all health professionals is relevant to countries’ needs. National governments and local health service providers should also establish closer working relationships with traditional health practitioners. Finally, attempts to manage the migration of skilled health care professionals must take place within both a national and regional framework. [adapted from author]
