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IA2030 Scorecard

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Global

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SP 1: Immunization Programs for Primary Health Care
1.2

Health workforce

What Does this Indicator Measure?

This indicator displays the density of a country’s health workforce, comparing the number of doctors, nurses, and midwives to a country’s population size. The attainment of an adequate, effective, and sustainable health workforce is essential to achieving Immunization Agenda 2030, Primary Health Care, and Universal Health Coverage goals. The global density of medical doctors, nurses and midwives is 57 per 10,000 population.

How Will Progress be Measured?

This indicator will show whether disparities between countries and regions remain fixed over the course of the decade, or whether efforts to shore up the health workforce, particularly in light of pandemic-related strain, will reduce disparities. While this indicator does not display trend data, the likely negative effect of the COVID pandemic on the health workforce is of concern and efforts to expand and maintain an effective workforce is critical.

Density of physicians, nurses and midwives 
per 10,000 population —Global

Year:
No data
The presentation of maps is not an expression of the opinion of Immunization Agenda 2030 regarding the legal status of countries/territories, their governing authorities, or their official borders.

Summary Table

2020
Density of Physicians, Nurses/Midwives56
Definition: Number of physicians, nurses and midwives per 10,000 population.
Measurement approach: In response to WHA resolution, WHA 69.19, an online National Health Workforce Accounts (NHWA) data monitoring and reporting mechanism was developed to facilitate reporting. Complementing national reporting through the NHWA data platform, additional sources such as National Census, Labour Force Surveys and key administrative national and regional sources are also employed. In general, the denominator data for workforce density (i.e. national population estimates) are obtained from the United Nations Population Division's World Population Prospects database. In cases where the official health workforce report provides density indicators instead of counts, estimates of the stock when calculated using the population estimated from the United Nations Population Division's World population prospects database.
Calculation:

Density of physicians, nurses and midwives per 10,000 population:

Numerator: Number of physicians, nurses and midwives, defined in headcounts.

Denominator: Total population (per 10,000)

Physicians comprise the following occupations: generalists, specialist medical practitioners and medical doctors. The International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO-08) unit group codes included in this category are 221, 2211, 2212.

Nursing and midwifery personnel comprise the following occupations: nursing professionals, nursing associate professionals, midwifey professional, midwifery associate professionals and related occupations. The ISCO unit group codes included in this category are 2221, 2222, 3221, and 3222 of ISCO-08.

Data source:

Numerator: WHO National Health Workforce Accounts (NHWA)

Denominator: UN Population Division's World Population Prospects