Abstract
BackgroundAs health workforce policy is gaining momentum, data sources and monitoring systems have significantly improved in the European Union and internationally. Yet data remain poorly connected to policy-making and implementation and often do not adequately support integrated approaches. This brings the importance of governance and the need for innovation into play.CaseThe present case study introduces a regional health workforce monitor in the German Federal State of Rhineland-Palatinate and seeks to explore the capacity of monitoring to innovate health workforce governance. The monitor applies an approach from the European Network on Regional Labour Market Monitoring to the health workforce. The novel aspect of this model is an integrated, procedural approach that promotes a ‘learning system’ of governance based on three interconnected pillars: mixed methods and bottom-up data collection, strong stakeholder involvement with complex communication tools and shared decision- and policy-making. Selected empirical examples illustrate the approach and the tools focusing on two aspects: the connection between sectoral, occupational and mobility data to analyse skill/qualification mixes and the supply–demand matches and the connection between monitoring and stakeholder-driven policy.ConclusionRegional health workforce monitoring can promote effective governance in high-income countries like Germany with overall high density of health workers but maldistribution of staff and skills. The regional stakeholder networks are cost-effective and easily accessible and might therefore be appealing also to low- and middle-income countries.
Highlights
As health workforce policy is gaining momentum, data sources and monitoring systems have significantly improved in the European Union and internationally
The analysis reveals a shift towards higher qualification of nurses over time; the percentage of registered nurses (RNs) is growing three times faster compared to assistant nurses (ANs)
This case study shows how regional health workforce monitoring can add new knowledge on developments especially in areas not well covered by other systems, like skill/qualification mix, sectoral dynamics and mobile workers in border regions
Summary
Regional health workforce monitoring can promote effective governance in high-income countries like Germany with overall high density of health workers but maldistribution of staff and skills.
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