Nursing and Midwifery in the South-East Asia

Nurses and midwives play a vital role in providing health services as the first and sometimes only point of care. Nurses and midwives, as the cornerstone of the strong, resilient health system toward achieving UHC, encompasses the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of communicable and noncommunicable diseases, sexual and reproductive health services, including family planning and maternal, newborn and child care, including immunization and breastfeeding support.

The progress in recruitment and training nurses and midwives has been strong in recent years, resulting in increased density of nurses and midwives from 15.7 per 10 000 population in 2014 to 17.9 per 10 000 population in 2018. However, the shortages of nursing and midwifery workforce still remains a challenge. WHO estimates the world needs an additional 7.6 million nurses and midwives by 2030, with the South-East Asia Region accounting for a disproportionate share – 1.9 million.

WHO SEARO supports Member States to strengthening nursing and midwifery workforce with focus on quality education, safe, healthy and satisfying work environment and nursing and midwifery leadership and management as together we pursue our goal: Universal Health Coverage – Health for all at all ages.