Liberia's First Health Workforce Program Strategy: Reflections and Lessons Learned.

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Systems Strengthening
• Human Resources for Health

Background:

• Liberia's health system was devastated by civil war and the Ebola epidemic.
• Maternal and child mortality rates were among the world's highest.
• Essential health services and primary care faced significant disruption.

Purpose of the Study:

• To outline the development and implementation of Liberia's Health Workforce Program (HWP) Strategy 2015-2021.
• To build a resilient health system capable of providing essential services and responding to crises.
• To add 6,000 new health professionals to the Liberian workforce.

Main Methods:

• Program development and initial implementation analysis.
• Review of strategy goals and objectives.
• Lessons learned documentation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Main Results:

• The Health Workforce Program (HWP) Strategy was developed to address critical health system gaps.
• The strategy aimed to significantly expand the health workforce.
• Implementation lessons were documented during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Conclusions:

• The HWP Strategy is crucial for rebuilding Liberia's health system.
• Expanding the health workforce is key to improving health outcomes and crisis response.
• Adapting health workforce strategies during global health crises is essential.