Evidence-based workforce planning in Australia

Authors from Health Workforce Australia have had an open access article published in the journal Human Resources for Health, which describes the background, methods and results of their Health Workforce 2025 project.  How evidence-based workforce planning in Australia is informing policy development in the retention and distribution of the health workforce explains how HWA was set up by the Council of Australian Governments as the national agency to progress health workforce reform.  The authors present the actions being taken to respond to their findings, especially in regard to innovation, immigration, training capacity and efficiency and workforce distribution.  They conclude by stressing the need for "coordinated, long-term reforms by government, professions and the higher education and training sector for a sustainable and affordable Australian health workforce."

Crettenden IF, McCarty MV, Fenech BJ, Heywood T, Taitz MC, Tudman S. Human Resources for Health, 12:7, DOI: 10.1186/1478-4491-12-7 (2014).