A Bold Strategy and Clear Vision to Improve the Global Health Workforce

By Vince Blaser, Frontline Health Workers Coalition

If not well thought out or without a plan to garner support or how to implement, strategies can be boring, dry and ineffective in driving action. On the other hand, strategies with a clear vision backed by governments, civil society, the private sector and other stakeholders can be a galvanizing force that can and has driven enormous progress in relatively short time spans in global health and development.

As we noted on this blog last week, the World Health Organization has been tasked with creating a “zero draft” of a strategy that aims to drive and coordinate action to improve the global health workforce from 2016-2030. The Ebola epidemic in West Africa has tragically highlighted to the world that strong actions to bolster the health workforce, especially on the frontlines of care in developing countries, are desperately needed to secure progress on preventing needless deaths and enabling prosperity.

The Frontline Health Workers Coalition today sent feedback to the Geneva-based Global Health Workforce Alliance today to its Synthesis Paper of a year-long consultation it led that will inform WHO in the creation of the strategy. If you have a few minutes, read the Synthesis Paper and FHWC’s feedback over and let us know your thoughts by commenting below. More importantly, let the Global Health Workforce Alliance know your thoughts by e-mailing ghwa@who.int by tomorrow (January 31).

We’re hopeful that this will not be the last chance for civil society to comment as this strategy is developed, but it is very important to advocate now for a strategy that can drive significant investment and support for frontline health workers in the coming 15 years. We hope you will join us.