Government planning to bridge health workforce gap

Dar es Salaam. President Samia Suluhu Hassan has directed the ministry of Health to complete a national assessment study to determine the current status of health professionals in the job market.

She emphasised the need for the ministry to continue holding professional council meetings to understand the external workforce and the actual needs within the country.

The President was speaking yesterday during the 3rd Mkapa Legacy Summit, which was held here in the city with the National Human Resources for Health (HRH) Conference conducted and organised by the Benjamin W. Mkapa Foundation.

“We would like to know the health workforce that is outside of healthcare facilities, including those in the job market,” she said.

The HRH summit was themed “Health Workforce: A Cornerstone to Resilient and Sustainable Development Agenda.”

President Samia also addressed the issue of employee benefits, assuring that these concerns would be gradually resolved.

She stressed the government’s appreciation for the efforts of health workers and the importance of maintaining their benefits.

She also urged banking institutions to support the education of health workers, particularly those specialised in caring for children with autism, noting the shortage of experts in this area as highlighted by Health Minister Ummy Mwalimu.

During her remarks, minister Mwalimu reported significant improvements in the availability of health professionals, attributed to the increasing number of graduates each year.

“In 2020, the number of mid-level graduates was 10,286 compared to 15,217 in 2023. The number of degree-level graduates increased from 4,373 in 2020 to 5,418 in 2023,” she said.

Minister Mwalimu also highlighted the overall strengthening of the health sector due to substantial investment and government prioritisation.

“Maternal deaths have decreased from 556 per 100,000 live births in 2016 to 104 per 100,000 live births in 2022. Child mortality under the age of five has decreased from 67 per 1,000 live births in 2016 to 43 per 1,000 live births in 2022,” she said.

Over the two days of the summit, experts have discussed several critical recommendations to improve the health sector in Tanzania, including how the government should establish a special arrangement for contracts between doctors and other health professionals who are unemployed and government hospitals that have a shortage of health staff.

“Through the ministry of Health, the government should continue to empower health professionals to improve the quality of healthcare services, thereby increasing citizens’ willingness and acceptance to join universal health insurance,” she added.

Other declarations from the experts include improvement of the training systems to keep pace with frequent changes, such as technological advancements and evolving health challenges, and the government should regulate the use of systems for classifying and assigning staff based on criteria.

“Another declaration was for the ministry, and public service management should establish procedures and guidelines for career progression plans for community-level health workers,” said Minister Mwalimu.

According to the Benjamin Mkapa Foundation’s chief executive, Dr Ellen Mkondya-Senkoro, this year’s HRH summit is run with the theme aim of highlighting the importance of political commitment, collaborative dialogue, and informed discussions in creating a resilient and sustainable health sector in Tanzania.