On Sunday, Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin announced that a 10-year strategic plan aimed at increasing the number of healthcare workers will be presented to the cabinet on Tuesday. This initiative follows the cabinet’s approval on July 9 of the Ministry of Public Health’s (MoPH) proposal to address the shortfall of healthcare professionals in the public sector.
Mr. Somsak stated that the ministry’s goal is to boost the number of graduate doctors, nurses, pharmacists, Thai traditional medicine practitioners, and public health workers by 31,074, 124,558, 9,800, 18,169, and 36,993, respectively, over the next decade.
“The shortage of healthcare workers must be addressed promptly to ensure that the universal healthcare scheme is adequately staffed, particularly as the government aims to establish Thailand as a wellness and medical hub,” he emphasized.
Nurse Shortage
Currently, Thailand has 71,616 doctors and 209,187 nurses. In addition to recruitment efforts, the ministry has devised three strategies to increase the number of nurses to meet the established target.
Firstly, the number of newly graduated nurses must be increased, along with an additional 10,000 nursing assistants who will complete a one-year training program within the first three years.
Secondly, improved work benefits will be introduced to retain experienced nurses within the public healthcare system.
Furthermore, the minister noted that 375 retired teaching nurses will return to work at nursing training institutions to support the workforce.
According to Mr. Somsak, skilled personnel are crucial to the healthcare sector, and their numbers will be elevated to appropriate levels over the next decade.