National health human resources agency needed, report says - Health

Community Action, Nov 18, 2002

OTTAWA -- Canada's health care system needs a national health human resources co-ordinating agency to provide "planning continuity over electoral cycles" and to stop competition between jurisdictions for limited resources says a report released by the Canadian Policy Networks Inc. at the behest of the Commision on the Future of Health Care.

The report stresses that "linkage is required across sectors, jurisdictions and stakeholders to create a policy table for health human resources."

The report, Health Human Resource Planning in Canada, stresses that once a nation-wide agency is created key shifts in thinking will also be required to address effectively the health care system's human resources requirements.

These shifts include:

* no longer treating human resources planning as a separate policy exercise by integrating health human resources planning into overall health system design issues; and

* planning health human resources needs from the perspective of population health needs instead of planning on personnel numbers;

* basing human resources planning on teams of providers rather than on individual health professions;

* co-operation between jurisdictions, including provinces and communities within those provinces.

The report was prepared by Katya Duvalko, Department of Health Policy University of Toronto, Patricia Baranek, Health Services Policy and Research Consultant, University of Toronto, Lise Lamothe, Department of Health Administration, University of Montreal and Kent Rondeau, Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Alberta. (For access to the report check website: communityaction.ca.)