World Health Worker Week – You Can’t Have Health Without a Health Worker

This week is World Health Worker Week and this years theme is Build The Health Workforce Back Better.

Between the 4th and 8th of April the world is coming together for World Health Worker Week to Build the Health Workforce Back Better. This is the 10th year the Frontline Health Workers Coalition and other partners are celebrating frontline health works and elevating their voices, roles and needs.

There are loads of events happening throughout the week and you can find out what’s happening and when by heading to the HWC website. One of the key roles Health Worker Week has is highlighting and amplifying health worker stories and voices from around the world. One example is the video below where Margaret Odera shares her story.

To Build Back Better We Need Comprehensive Workforce Development Options

At Physiopedia we agree with the the World Health Organisation when they say that strong health systems require health workers who are educated and empowered to provide the health services that meet population health needs. As this statement says, education is at the heart of workforce development and without access to education we can’t expect our staff to adapt to the rapidly evolving healthcare landscape at the same speed.

This poses a question – how do we make access to education equitable and accessible for everyone but also relevant to the local population at scale?

It’s a well known fact that there is inequity in accessing educational resources for those working in developing nations. But what isn’t as well known or discussed is the different levels of access to relevant education between healthcare professions.

Think about it. Consider your own workplace and how much time you get to spend time and money on CPD compared to other healthcare professionals. For example, in the UK Physicians have a centralised educational system which is managed by Health Education England throughout their training programmes as junior doctors. Compare this to Nurses or Allied Health Professionals whose funding and quality of training dwarfs in comparison.

As patient acuity and complexity increases around the world, it’s essential that all healthcare professionals have easy access to information and evidence to support them. This is especially true as traditional healthcare worker roles are expanded to meet the needs of local populations. For a long time Physiopedia has been leading the way in levelling the playing field, by ensuring healthcare professionals have access to the latest evidence regardless of where they work and which profession they are.

Each month 3 million people access Physiopedia which tells a story of both clinicians and the public searching for information they can use and understand. Physiopedia is unique in that it provides something which bridges the gap between clinicians and the public whilst serving the local populations around the world. Our volunteers, who write and update our pages, come from different clinical and socioeconomic backgrounds from countries around the world. This mens they bring their local knowledge and perspective to our content enabling us to truly serve the local population.

By creating a place when all healthcare professionals can come together to learn adds an extra, and crucial, dimension to workforce development. By looking beyond our norms and listening to clinicians from around the world we can gain a new outlook on our clinical practice. This is a key reason to the success of Physioplus – bringing a diverse range of clinicians together teaches us things we wouldn’t normally be able to. Our professionally agnostic content means healthcare workers can take their skills to the next level enabling the the workforce to build back better. 

Find out more about Physioplus.