An Integrated Primary Care Workforce Planning Toolkit at The Regional Level (Part 2) Quantitative Tools Compiled for Decision-Makers in Toronto, Canada Journal Articles uri icon

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abstract

  • Abstract Background: Health workforce planning capability at a regional level is increasingly necessary to ensure that the healthcare needs of defined local populations can be met by the health workforce. In 2016, a regional health authority in Toronto, Canada identified a need for more robust health workforce planning infrastructure and processes. The goal of this project was to develop an evidence-informed toolkit for integrated, multi-professional, needs-based primary care workforce planning for the region. This article presents the quantitative component of the workforce planning toolkit and describes the process followed to develop this tool.Methods: We first developed a framework for quantitative health workforce planning to assess the alignment of regional service requirements with the service capacity of the workforce. We then conducted an environmental scan to identify datasets addressing population health need and profession-specific health workforce supply that could contribute to quantitative health workforce modeling. We assessed these sources of data for comprehensiveness, quality, and availability.Results: The quantitative model developed as part of the toolkit includes components relating to both population health need and health workforce supply. Different modules were developed to capture the information, including an allocation process for optimizing service delivery. Only data elements meeting criteria for quality, availability, and comprehensiveness were integrated into the model.Conclusions: A quantitative health workforce planning model is a necessary component of any health workforce planning toolkit. In combination with qualitative tools, it supports integrated, multi-professional, needs-based primary care workforce planning.

publication date

  • October 19, 2020