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National Health Profile 2018
Human Resources in Health Sector
Highlights
Human Resources for Health is the most important building block of public health. Availability of adequate
number of human resources with suitable skill mix and their appropriate deployment at different levels of health
care set-up are essential for providing effective health care services for the population.
In many developing countries, such as India, information on human resources in the health sector is
incomplete and unreliable. This prevents effective workforce planning and management. National Health Profile
aims to address this deficit by producing a more complete picture of India’s health workforce.
Human Resource indicators provide an overview of availability of trained and specialized medical, nursing
and paramedical personnel in the country. These also give an idea regarding regional distribution and disparities.
Human Resource indicators cover the details of allopathic doctors, dental surgeons, AYUSH doctors, nursing
personnel and various paramedical health man-powers in the country.
Number of registered allopathic doctors possessing recognized medical qualifications (under MCI
Act) and registered with state medical council for the years 2016 and 2017 were 25,282 and 17,982
respectively. At present, average population served per government allopathic doctor is 11,039.
(Table 5.1 and 5.3)
There has been a marked improvement in the Dentist to population Ratio. Number of Dental Surgeon
registered with Central/State Dental Councils of India up to 31.12.2017 were 2,51,207. (Table 5.2)
India, with its kaleidoscopic variety and rich cultural heritage, is proud of some unique medicinal
forms that look at health, disease and causes of disease in completely different ways. Best known as
the AYUSH, its main focus is on holistic health and well-being of humans. Over the years with gaining
popularity, there is a steady rise in total number of registered AYUSH Doctors in India from 7, 71,468
in 2016 to 773668 in 2017.(Table 5.4)
AYUSH has maximum number of registered Ayurvedic doctors (55.44%), followed by registered
Homeopathy Doctors (36.77%) in India. (Figure 5.4)
There is an increase in the availability of Allopathic Medical Practitioners, Dental Surgeon and Nurses
per lakh population over the years.
Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) plays very crucial role in providing healthcare services pertaining to
maternal and child health. They are having wider linkages with ASHA workers, Anganwadi workers of
ICDS and other development sectors like education, water supply and sanitation. There are total of
8,41,279 ANMs serving in the country as on 31.12.2016. (Table 5.5)
There are 19,80,536 Registered Nurses and Registered Midwives (RN & RM) and 56,367 Lady Heath
Visitors serving in the country as on 31.12.2016