James Buchan

James Buchan is an Adjunct Professor at the School of Nursing and Midwifery within the Faculty of Health at University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Australia. He serves as the Adjunct Professor of the WHO Collaborating Centre at UTS, bringing over thirty years of extensive experience in healthcare human resources across more than 50 countries worldwide.

His professional expertise spans health workforce pay, incentives and reward strategy; workforce planning; employment relations; regulation of health professionals; performance management; labour market analysis; and skill mix/extended roles. He has extensive experience working directly with Ministries of Health globally and is a frequent invited speaker at national and international conferences on human resources issues in the health sector.

Professor Buchan's research interests focus on health workforce policy, human resources for health, healthcare systems strengthening, and workforce planning. His work addresses critical challenges in health systems globally, with particular attention to workforce migration, retention strategies, and the optimization of nursing and midwifery workforces. His research spans multiple regions including Europe, Asia, and Africa, with recent work conducted in China, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Moldova and Japan. Analysis of his recent publications reveals a consistent focus on evidence-based policy development for health workforce challenges across diverse settings.

Professional Recognition:

• Extensive collaboration with major international health organizations including WHO, World Bank, OECD, and EU
• Regular invited speaker at national and international conferences on health workforce issues
• Significant contribution to health workforce policy development globally

Professor Buchan's advisory work focuses on health workforce policy development across multiple countries and regions. His work has directly informed policy decisions in numerous countries, particularly regarding workforce planning, migration, and retention strategies. He has led or contributed to major research projects examining health workforce issues in diverse settings, from conflict-affected regions to high-income countries facing workforce challenges. His position with the WHO Collaborating Centre at UTS positions him at the forefront of translating academic research into practical health workforce policy implementation.