General status and allocation equity of public health professionals in China

Objective To analyze the quantity,quality and allocation equity of public health professionals in China and to provide evidences for government agencies to enact proper strategies.Methods The number,age,education background,and professional titles of public health professionals were described and population and geographic allocation equity of the professionals were evaluated with Gini coefficient.Results In 2012,the total number of public health professionals reached to 667 thousands and the total number of public health practitioner reached to 108 thousands in China;compared to those in 2005,the two numbers decreased by 24.0% and 17.6%.Of all public health practitioners,only 26.7% had the education of bachelor or above and 43.7% had intermediate or above professional titles;the proportion of the public health practitioners at elder age increased obviously.The allocation of specialized public health institutions in different areas was unbalanced;there was a good equity for the population allocation of the institutions,with a Gini coefficient of less than 0.2,and a severe inequity for the geographic allocation of the institutions,with a Gini coefficient of more than 0.6.Conclusion The quantity,quality and allocation equity of public health professionals in China need to be improved.