Despite that growth, there were still significant workforce gaps.
Health NZ’s report said the health system was less productive than it used to be, meaning New Zealanders were not getting better, faster care. Training capacity was limited and international demand for healthcare workers made it more difficult to recruit overseas staff.
If nothing changed, New Zealand would need an estimated 3450 doctors, 4100 nurses and 4450 more allied health professionals by 2033, on top of the positions that were already vacant.
That was on top of existing shortages. The most significant shortages in medical roles were in the fields of psychiatry, dentistry, dental and oral surgery, oncology, haematology, cardiology, and radiology.
There were also significant shortages and future demand for other roles, including pharmacists and social workers.
To address the shortages, chief executive Margie Apa said Health NZ would focus on
training more health workers domestically, getting better at recruiting from overseas and doing more to retain existing workers.
Health NZ would also changed how it delivered care by “shifting to new models of care and service delivery approaches”.
“I am confident that this plan is achievable and that through hard work, co-operation, and innovation we can start seeing improvements in our health workforce over the next three years,” Apa said.
Last year’s workforce plan stated another 8000 nurses were needed over the next decade, on top of 4800 vacancies at the time. It also said another 3400 doctors were needed, while identifying an existing shortage of 1700 doctors.
At present, local training of doctors is limited to 614 a year, following increases in capacity last year and this year. A further increase of 25 places is planned next year, and the coalition Government plans to increase domestic training of doctors by another 120 each year by building a third medical school at the University of Waikato - though the policy is complicated by the Act Party’s uncertainty about the proposal.
New Zealand is also heavily dependent on foreign doctors. In 2023, 964 doctors who received their first annual practising certificate were from overseas, compared to 557 New Zealand-trained doctors.
Health Minister Shane Reti announced funding for 50 new senior doctors and 75 senior nurses last month. Some health leaders said that was a “drop in the bucket” and opposed the competitive nature of the funding, which they said would pit hospitals against each other.
Health shortages
- Doctors - 1810 vacancies, extra 3440 needed by 2023
- Nurses - 2250 vacancies, extra 4120 needed by 2023
- Midwives - 680 vacancies
- Pharmacists - 1000 vacancies, 570 extra needed by 2023
- Dentists - 380 vacancies, 280 extra needed by 2023
- Radiologists - 90 vacancies, 90 extra needed by 2023
- MRI and CT specialists - 160 vacancies, 270 extra needed by 2023
- Sonographers - 70 vacancies
- Physios - 650 vacancies, 690 extra needed by 2023
- Occupational therapists - 550 vacancies, 770 extra needed by 2023
- Speech language therapists - 100 vacancies
- Pathologists - 140 vacancies, 560 extra needed by 2023
- Specialist allied care - 380 vacancies, 390 extra needed by 2023
- Social workers - 900 vacancies, 910 extra needed by 2023
- Kaiāwhina/care roles - 700 vacancies, future demand unknown
- Trades and support roles, 210 vacancies, future demand unknown
Isaac Davison is an Auckland-based reporter who covers health issues. He joined the Herald in 2008 and has previously covered the environment, politics and social issues.
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