Workforce development: planning what you need starts with knowing what you have

Abstract

Health workforce planning and research occurs at both national and state/territory levels, but identifying current workforce availability and future workforce need is more problematic at a regional level. We report on the practical approach to workforce development taken by North Coast Area Health Service (NCAHS) in NSW, Australia. The NCAHS plan considers the impact of workforce ageing, changes in casemix and volume predicted by population demographics, staff level guidelines associated with service enhancements, and changes in service delivery models driven by the need for economic efficiencies, greater investment in disease prevention and medical technological advancements. Finally, the paper addresses how workforce development plans can assist sustainable service delivery through targeted strategies in recruitment, retention and retraining.