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Research Themes

The McMaster Health Systems Workforce Collaborative brings together leading researchers to tackle the workforce challenges shaping healthcare delivery today. Using a systems-oriented lens, we examine how labour markets, employers, and workers interact across health systems.

Core Research Topics

We use evidence-based methods to conduct research, including but not limited to community engagement, systems and geographic mapping, stakeholder analysis, survey-based data collection and mixed-methodologies.

Our research is designed to support real-world decision making, equipping leaders with evidence to build a sustainable, equitable and responsive health system across ten core research topics:

Labour Supply and Demand

Factors shaping healthcare labour supply and demand, including availability of full-time roles for related and non-regulated healthcare workers

Immigration and Workforce Mobility

Pathways and barriers to integrating internationally educated workers across federal, provincial, and local health systems

Workforce Diversity

Drivers of workforce diversity and its impact on access, quality, and equity of care

Employment Integration

Effective, efficient and productive employment across healthcare settings

Leadership

Impact of leadership on workforce performance and care delivery across health systems

Working Conditions

Workplace factors influencing worker health, stress levels, wages, and retention

Physical Environment

Impact of workplace design, ergonomics, and physical conditions on worker health and performance

Employment Preferences

Worker preferences for scheduling, shift length and working hours, and their impact on workforce stability

Precarious Employment

Health and system impact of temporary, contract and insecure employment arrangements

Task Shifting

Redistribution of care tasks to community members and alternative healthcare providers, including in Indigenous and remote communities