WHO warns of global shortage of health workers by 2030

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned today that the world will face a shortage of medical staff by 2030, with a quarter of doctors retiring in the next 10 years.

“In many countries, both the population and the health workforce are ageing at the same time. This could further worsen the projected global shortage of 11.1 million health workers by 2030,” the WHO said in a statement, citing data from more than 100 countries in the report, Reuters reports.

The WHO states that by 2030, an estimated 67 countries will have insufficient staff to maintain current standards of medical treatment.

To maintain the current distribution of medical personnel relative to the population, 832,000 additional health workers are needed.

Higher-income countries, including many in Europe, will be hit hardest because they have a higher percentage of older health workers, and in these countries one in three doctors will retire in the next 10 years.