Nurses and midwives, total — all countries

Nurses and midwives, total — South Asia

Nurses and midwives, total in South Asia in 2023 — 4,131,510 people. Since 2004, the indicator has risen by 3,394.7%.

2023 4.13M people +5.79% vs 2021
World rank
Period maximum 4.13M people2023
Period minimum 118,223 people2004

Trend over time

2004–2023 · people

Nurses and midwives, total — South Asia, 2004–202302M4M6M200420062008201020122014201620182020202220232004: 118,223 people2007: 1,651,738 people2008: 1,811,009 people2009: 1,873,504 people2010: 2,060,105 people2012: 2,538,532 people2013: 228,775 people2014: 2,856,195 people2015: 2,964,010 people2016: 3,066,421 people2017: 3,270,271 people2018: 2,770,031 people2019: 330,037 people2020: 3,509,732 people2021: 3,905,430 people2023: 4,131,510 people
Change over the period: +4.01M (+3,394.68%) Average annual rate: 20.57 %
Nurses and midwives, total — South Asia, by year South Asia All countries CSV XLSX
Year people Change Change, %
2023 4.13M
2021 3.91M +395,698 +11.27%
2020 3.51M +3.18M +963.44%
2019 330,037 −2.44M −88.09%
2018 2.77M −500,240 −15.3%
2017 3.27M +203,850 +6.65%
2016 3.07M +102,411 +3.46%
2015 2.96M +107,815 +3.77%
2014 2.86M +2.63M +1,148.47%
2013 228,775 −2.31M −90.99%
2012 2.54M
2010 2.06M +186,601 +9.96%
2009 1.87M +62,495 +3.45%
2008 1.81M +159,271 +9.64%
2007 1.65M
2004 118,223

About the indicator

The number of nursing and midwifery personnel, from WHO. This category is almost always the largest in a health system — worldwide there are on average about three times as many nurses as physicians, and in countries with developed primary care the gap is wider still.

Important: The ratio of nurses to physicians speaks of the structure of a system: a low value usually means that physicians are doing the work of nursing care, and that is a sign of a staffing shortage rather than of an abundance of doctors.

Source: Global Health Observatory (WHO), license CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.