Washington DC, 1 June 2026 — The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the WHO Regional Office for Europe (WHO/Europe) co-organized a two-day collaborative workshop on health workforce planning, bringing together government representatives, technical experts, and academics from across Europe and the Americas to exchange experiences and explore innovative approaches to addressing workforce challenges in increasingly complex health systems.
Held on 26–27 May at the WHO Office in Copenhagen, the meeting brought together policymakers, technical experts, and academics to discuss common challenges in health workforce planning. Discussions focused on the growing pressures facing health systems, including demographic change, evolving service delivery needs, workforce shortages, and the need for more integrated planning approaches.
Throughout the workshop, participants examined how complexity theory and systems thinking can inform strategic health workforce planning, while sharing national experiences and institutional approaches to strengthening planning processes. The meeting also explored how integrated planning across the health workforce, service delivery, infrastructure, and financing can contribute to improved health system performance.
Representing PAHO, Benjamín Puertas, Unit Chief of the Human Resources for Health, presented the findings of the Organization’s regional analysis on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the health workforce in the Americas, as well as an AI-powered platform currently being developed by PAHO to support health workforce planning and forecasting.
“Strategic health workforce planning has become a growing priority for countries across all regions,” said Benjamín Puertas. “Forums such as this provide valuable opportunities to exchange experiences, learn from different contexts, and explore how emerging tools, including artificial intelligence, can support better decision-making and help anticipate future workforce needs,” he added.
The second day of the workshop focused on practical exercises and capacity-building sessions, including approaches to sociotechnical systems, capability-based planning, and team- and skills-based workforce models.
The meeting concluded with a shared commitment to continue collaboration and knowledge exchange between countries and regions, recognizing that many health workforce challenges are common across contexts and can benefit from collective learning and innovation.
