2025 global health care outlook

Valuing health care employees

The global health care workforce shortage is expected to continue in 2025, especially in low- and lower-middle-income countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates a shortfall of 10 million health care workers by 2030.6 More than 80% of the surveyed health care executives expect to see external workforce challenges this year, such as hiring difficulties and talent shortages. Consequently, survey respondents said it will be important for their organizations to invest in retention and engagement strategies.

This need for investment in workforce retention and engagement is underscored by recent events. In early 2024, more than 12,000 junior doctors in South Korea went on strike, seeking better working conditions and fewer hours. South Korea has one of the lowest ratios of doctors to population in the developed world, with just 2.6 clinicians per 1,000 people.7 Later in 2024, junior doctors from England’s National Health Service (NHS) engaged in a prolonged strike for higher pay and better working conditions, resulting in the cancellation of more than 1.5 million appointments, according to the NHS.8 In New Zealand, about 36,000 nurses, health care assistants, and midwives went on strike in December 2024, calling for higher pay, increased staffing, improved patient safety.9 Burnout among clinical staff, often due to prolonged stress from demanding work conditions, can decrease productivity, reduce job satisfaction, and negatively impact patient care.10

Health systems, whether public or private, are businesses. However, unlike other businesses that view their employees as assets, health care workers are sometimes overlooked in resource allocation decisions, especially when budgets are tight. Nevertheless, prioritizing the health and well-being of staff across the organization can lead to cost reductions by decreasing burnout and boosting retention rates. This approach can help boost productivity among existing staff while stabilizing expenses related to hiring and onboarding new employees.

Reducing administrative burdens should be a priority for health system leaders. Research has shown that these low-value tasks contribute to clinician burnout.11 An estimated 15% to 28% of nurses’ work is made up of low-value tasks. Doctors who work in hospital intensive care units might spend as little as 15% to 30% of their time with patients,12 with the rest spent on administrative tasks such as updating medical records. Digital tools have the potential to streamline some of those tasks, giving physicians and other clinicians more time to interact directly with patients, which could help reduce burnout.

According to a model developed by the Deloitte US Center for Health Solutions, technology can free up between 13% and 21% of nurses’ time, which translates to 240 to 400 hours per year for a single nurse. Many health systems operate on tight budgets and often don’t have enough clinical staff to meet demand. Can technology change that? Some digital tools that are already widely available can reduce the time nurses spend on administrative tasks by 20%, allowing them to devote more time to their patients, according to Deloitte US research.

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