Restructuring the health workforces of the NIS countries: report of an unprecedented multinational conference.

Health professionals, educators, and policy-makers in the US and the Newly Independent States met in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and shared concerns on health workforce planning, access to care, and training. The International Conference on the Health Care Workforce for the 21st Century recognized the scope and interdependence of workforce strategies that must be employed to achieve health reform objectives in the new political system. Specific issues addressed in the conference include health workforce planning; interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary education; primary care, family medicine, and general practice; the supply of physicians; medical education; supply and role of nurses; assessing the competency of practitioners; continuing education and training; the role of professional organizations; accreditation; and international collaboration. Conclusions of the deliberations provide insight into present conditions, prospects for change and how future development assistance can most usefully be targeted.