PHSSR Saudi Arabia 2025

3.1 Workforce for health system sustainability The efficient management of workforce governance and the provision of a talent pool that is ‘ fit for purpose’ and ‘ fit for practice’ are key aspects of healthcare. There are a number of essential elements to ensuring the sustainability of Saudi Arabia’s health workforce. The health workforce pipeline has a long ‘factory-to-market’ lead time (see Figure 3). Candidates typically take seven to ten years of high school and tertiary-level education before joining the health workforce. Then, depending on their choice of specialty and subspecialty, they may require a further five to ten years to be fully trained to function independently within the system. On average, it takes 16 years to add skilled talent to the health workforce. The Saudi Commission for Health Specialities (SCFHS) is the governmental body responsible for health profession licensing and registration. 41 Sustainability and Resilience in the Saudi Arabian Health System The Partnership for Health System Sustainability and Resilience Figure 3: Production timeline of the health workforce in Saudi Arabia Healthcare professionals are expected to remain up-to-date with science and technology that impact the productivity and quality of care offered to patients and the community. To ensure this, the country has strict licensing and re-licensing requirements. Continuous professional development activities are submitted to the SCFHS every two years so that knowledge acquisition can be monitored. However, this neither captures changes in the quality of service delivery nor is it connected to service outcomes or patient safety measures. Access and quality are closely linked to health workforce density and skills mix. Multimorbidity, chronic conditions and new treatments have led to fundamental changes in the health system, and these changes have impacted on the daily workload of health professionals. Such changes necessitate additional sta ffing, education, training, licensing and incentive mechanisms, which must be de fined and monitored through a uni fied cross-sectoral national workforce planning and development framework, under the umbrella of the MoH, which is the ultimate regulator and manager of the health service ecosystem. Challenges A recent, internal analysis by the SCFHS’s National Centre for Health Workforce Planning identi fied eight challenges in health workforce sustainability: •Demographic changes and burden of disease : Longer life expectancies, population growth and an ageing population are increasing the burden of disease and demand for health services and healthcare workers.. •Rapid technological advances : Artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, data automation and advanced digital technologies are challenging health service delivery models, as these advancements demand different technological skills from health professionals and other professions. •Non-uni fied vision : Successful planning and development of the health workforce require a long- term, strategic vision beyond the next three to five years, considering the lead times for workforce education and training, and rapid advancements in the health and care environment. •Quality and availability of workforce data : There is a lack of appropriate and accurate workforce data, especially regarding workforce supply, attrition, private sector characteristics, service outputs and staff productivity.