Health Worker Registries: Managing the Health Care Workforce

Abstract Registries play an instrumental role in facilitating the transfer, aggregation, and analysis of standardized data in health information exchange (HIE). One such example is a health worker registry (HWR), a central, authoritative registry that maintains the unique identities of health workers according to a defined minimum data set. Currently, data comprising workers’ information—such as education, licensure, and place of employment—are collected through disparate methods and maintained in a variety of information systems. Harmonization of these data via an HWR can support interoperability and comparability of worker information across systems, thereby facilitating efficient workforce planning, including verification of training and education, identification of workforce shortages, and coordination of emergency response. This chapter identifies who is considered a “health worker” and why a registry of these individuals is a useful component of an HIE. It also provides guidance on selection of data elements and standards to include in the development of an HWR.