Event highlights
Overview of the workshop
On 25 March 2025, WHO/Europe hosted a 1-day online workshop aimed at strengthening health workforce data and information systems. The event brought together 130 participants from 36 countries across the WHO European Region, including national data focal points, human resources for health (HRH) directors, and government chief nursing and midwifery officers.
This workshop served as an action-oriented platform where participants discussed:
- how to improve the quality and use of health and care workforce data;
- challenges and solutions in developing national human resources for health information systems to enable reporting and publishing of a full account of their health and care workforce; and
- how to promote further collaboration among countries to enhance data and information systems.
Dr Natasha Azzopardi-Muscat, Director of WHO/Europe’s Division of Country Health Policies and Systems, said in her opening remarks: “Without robust, reliable data, we risk operating in the dark, and that’s a risk we can’t afford. By learning from successful models and experiences, we can craft smarter, more effective policies in the long run. Improving how we collect, analyse and use workforce data will not only strengthen our health systems but also support the dedicated professionals who sustain them – and ultimately, the populations they serve”.
“Solid data on the health workforce is crucial for making informed decisions and shaping our health systems effectively. Unfortunately, many countries continue to face challenges in this area,” said Dr Tomas Zapata, Regional Adviser for Health Workforce and Service Delivery at WHO/Europe. “That’s why it’s so important to create spaces where we can share knowledge and collaborate on finding practical solutions to bridge data gaps while improving efficiency. This type of workshop provides the perfect opportunity to exchange valuable insights and work together on addressing key challenges, ultimately setting the stage for data-driven health workforce development.”
Key takeaways from the event include the need for maintaining the momentum behind strengthening HRH data and information, with WHO tools and guidelines available to support this effort. A key driver of better data is the improved understanding and use of data by decision-makers, guided by key HRH policy questions.
Each country should build on their existing human resources for health information systems, utilizing the National Health Workforce Accounts to provide principles, guidelines, indicators and tools for improving HRH data. The importance of investing in capacity-building, and training for data collection, reporting and utilization was highlighted, along with the continued need for units focused specifically on HRH.
Strengthening health and care workforce data and evidence
This workshop is part of the implementation of the “Framework for Action on the Health and Care Workforce in the WHO European Region”, which requires the enhancement of the quality and availability of health and care workforce data across the Region.
WHO/Europe is supporting Member States in developing data and information systems to enable national health authorities to build strategic intelligence on the health and care workforce.
Event notice
25 March 2025 / Virtual / English with interpretation in Russian
WHO/Europe is organizing a one-day online workshop titled “Unlocking the power of data and human resources for health information systems to support health and care workforce development in the WHO European Region”. This event aims to strengthen data collection, analysis and informed policy-making to support the implementation of the “Framework for Action on the Health and Care Workforce in the WHO European Region 2023–2030”, which was endorsed by all 53 Member States at the 73rd WHO Regional Committee for Europe in October 2023.
Workshop objectives
This interactive event will bring together national health workforce and data focal points to:
- enhance the quality and use of health workforce data through the National Health Workforce Accounts (NHWA) and joint data collections with WHO/Europe, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and Eurostat (a Directorate-General of the European Commission);
- share best practices and develop actionable improvement plans to strengthen Human Resources for Health Information Systems (HRHIS); and
- foster dialogue and collaboration among national health workforce focal points to support the implementation of the Framework.
The workshop is designed for national-level stakeholders, including data focal points, health workforce focal points and government chief nursing and midwifery officers.
Participants will have the opportunity to exchange perspectives on the current status of health workforce data and information systems, identify key areas for improvement and engage in an action-oriented dialogue with WHO/Europe.
Strengthening health and care workforce data and evidence
This area of work aims to enhance the quality and availability of health and care workforce data across the Region.
Comprehensive national and subnational data on the health workforce is essential for evidence-informed policy-making. However, many countries face challenges in reporting and publishing a full account of their health and care workforce situation due to dispersed information and capacity constraints.
To address these challenges, WHO/Europe supports Member States in developing minimum and coordinated datasets, enabling national health authorities to build strategic intelligence on the health and care workforce and guiding health workforce projections based on population needs and health system priorities.
For more information and registration details, please contact Dr Alba Llop-Girones, llopa@who.int .