Objective  To examine the status of personnel outflow in centers for disease control and prevention (CDCs) at provincial level during 2014 – 2018 for providing evidences to personnel training in CDCs and the construction of national health workforce in China.

  Methods  We conducted a survey among 37 CDCs in 31 provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government), 5 cities with separate planning and Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps. The CDCs′ information relevant to human resources for the period from 2014 to 2018 were collected using a questionnaire compiled based on Delphi expert consultations. Provincial and regional status of human resources and personnel outflow were analyzed statistically.

  Results  Valid data were collected from all the CDCs surveyed. Of the 12 408 personnel officially registered in the CDCs, 54.1% were females and 45.9% were males; 61.55% were aged 30 – 49 years; 44.9% had academic degrees of bachelor and above; and 87.6% were professional and technical personnel. During the 5-year period, the total number of personnel outflowed from the CDCs was 868 and the number increased gradually from 2015. Among the outflowed personnel, 53.6% were females and 46.4% were males; 46.5% were 30 – 40 years old; 44.9% were with educational backgrounds of bachelor degree or above; 70.9% had intermediate or lower professional title; and 51.7% worked in the CDCs less than 10 years (449 people). There were significant regional differences in the ratio and structure of personnel outflow among the CDCs in eastern, central and western China (P < 0.001).

  Conclusion  The personal outflow from CDCs at provincial level is not conducive to the disease control and prevention in China and the situation needs to be concerned for the CDCs' capacity construction.