Global Health Workforce Grew 198.5% Since 1990, But Remains 34.4 Million Workers Short Of UHC Benchmark

The global health workforce remains an estimated 34.4 million workers short of the minimum workforce levels associated with reaching a score of 80 out of 100 on the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) effective coverage index. The gap persists despite a 198.5% increase in the global health workforce between 1990 and 2023, when the number of health workers increased by 81.2 million to reach 122.1 million.

The largest workforce gap was among nurses and midwives. Researchers estimated that reaching the UHC benchmark would require an additional 23.9 million nurses and midwives, 7.1 million physicians, 1 . . .