The WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel was adopted by the Sixty-third World Health Assembly in 2010. The Code establishes voluntary principles for ethical international recruitment, safeguarding the rights of migrant health personnel while promoting equitable and sustainable health systems. Its implementation, relevance and effectiveness have been assessed through periodic reporting and expert advisory group reviews. Following the third review in 2026, which reaffirmed the Code’s growing relevance amid increasing international recruitment of health personnel, the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly adopted amendments. The second edition (November 2026) incorporates five new provisions (Articles 2.4, 2.5, 5.8, 10.4 and 10.5), extending the Code’s scope to health personnel employed as care workers and clarifying its applicability during health emergencies and other crises. The amendments also encourage mutually beneficial partnerships and targeted co-investments between source and destination countries, measures to mitigate health workforce losses during crises, and investments in health worker education, employment and retention.

Strong primary health care-oriented systems depend on an integrated health and care workforce capable of delivering continuous, people-centred services across diverse settings. As countries face workforce shortages and growing demand for care associated with ageing, disability and chronic health conditions, care workers need to be better integrated into health workforce planning and policy. Development, management and support of care workers: towards an integrated health and care workforce: policy options (October 2026) provides evidence-informed policy options to help countries plan, develop, manage and support paid and unpaid care workers providing personal care in homes, health services and residential settings.

The National health workforce accounts: health workforce levels and trends 2026 report (August 2026) provides an overview of the status of NHWA implementation and an analysis of global and regional health workforce levels and trends based on official data reported by countries to the World Health Organization. Developed to support evidence-informed health workforce policy-making and planning, the report examines progress in strengthening national health workforce information systems, data availability and reporting across countries, and the use of standardized indicators to monitor human resources for health in support of universal health coverage, the Sustainable Development Goals and other health objectives.

Who are health and care workers? 

• Health worker - Health workers are all people primarily engaged in actions with the primary intent of enhancing health. For health workers, the relevant ISCO codes are generally found within the "Health Professionals" (Sub-Major Group 22) and "Health Associate Professionals" (Minor Group 325) categories, with more specific unit groups depending on the type of health work. 
• Heath care assistant (ISCO-08 code: 5321) - Institution-based personal care workers who provide direct personal care and assistance with activities of daily living to patients and residents in a variety of health care settings such as hospitals, clinics and residential nursing care facilities. They generally work in implementation of established care plans and practices, and under the direct supervision of medical, nursing or other health professionals or associate professionals.
• Home-based personal care workers (ISCO-08 code: 5322) who provide routine personal care and assistance with activities of daily living to persons who are in need of such care due to effects of ageing, illness, injury, or other physical or mental conditions, in private homes and other independent residential settings. 

Key figures

The estimated stock of health workers now exceeds 70 million. Shortage estimates decreased steadily since the Global Strategy adoption in 2026, trends that may be linked to investment decisions, the adoption of evidence-based policies and improved data availability.

The pace of progress has slowed, however, and masks diverging trends across and within regions, prompting an upward adjustment to the projected workforce shortage by 2030 to 11 million (compared to the 2022 estimate of a projected 10 million shortage by 2030).

Women comprise 67% of the global health workforce.