The Ministry of Health and Medical Services (MHMS) Deputy Secretary for Corporate Services, Mr Layten Jacob and National Director of Nursing, Mr Michael Larui successfully participated at a two-day implementation workshop on ‘Shaping a Future Health Workforce’ in the Western Pacific on 1st to 2nd of November in Vientiane, Lao People’s Democratic Republic.
World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO) facilitated the workshop for Heads of Corporate Services, Human Resources, Planning, Policy and Administration Officers and HR Consultants.
WHO WPRO, in consultation with Member States, developed the new Regional Framework to Shape a Health Workforce for the Future of the Western Pacific Region, which was endorsed at the seventy-fourth session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Western Pacific in October 2023.
The Framework lays out a shared vision and strategic approach for building a future workforce and calls for increased HRH stewardship to align HRH policies to a primary care approach.
Mr Layten Jacob, Deputy Secretary for Corporate Services stated, a well-performing health workforce is essential to building resilient health systems that can meet the health needs of changing populations due to ageing, non-communicable diseases and health emergencies.
“Despite recent progress in enhancing health workforce in countries and areas of the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region, critical gaps remain in the overall number, distribution, skill mix and quality of human resources for health (HRH).
The objectives of the workshop were:
- to highlight evidence-based HRH planning and policy development by sharing core concepts, best practices and key tools, including national health workforce accounts and health labour market analysis;
- to exchange ideas and identify priority actions to improve the HRH governance and stewardship capacity in Member States; and
- to strengthen the network and community of practice among HRH focal points across the Region.
He added the workshop was important for Solomon Islands Ministry of Health and Medical Services as work is currently ongoing for the development of the National Health Workforce Strategy as a companion to the National Health Strategic Plan 2022 to 2031.
“The development of the strategy is also carried out in consideration of the Regional Framework to Shape a Health Workforce for the Future of the Western Pacific”, Mr. Jacob said.
- MHMS
