Barbados: Nurses and midwives (per 1,000 people)

Key figures

Over five years it is up 17.35% from 3.12 in 2018 (3.25% a year on average, compounded). Since 1995 it is down 29.38% from 5.19 in 1995 (1.23% a year on average, compounded). The World Bank has no value for 19 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

How it compares

In 2023, Barbados had the 37th highest value of the 65 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Barbados in the 2023 ranking

• Kyrgyz Republic — 34th of 65: 4.08
• Malaysia — 35th of 65: 4.05
• Guyana — 36th of 65: 3.93
• Thailand — 38th of 65: 3.57
• Turkmenistan — 39th of 65: 3.49
• Jordan — 40th of 65: 3.33

What this measures

Nurses and midwives include professional nurses, professional midwives, auxiliary nurses, auxiliary midwives, enrolled nurses, enrolled midwives and other associated personnel, such as dental nurses and primary care nurses.

Limitations: The WHO compiles data from household and labor force surveys, censuses, and administrative records. Data comparability is limited by differences in definitions and training of medical personnel varies. In addition, human resources tend to be concentrated in urban areas, so that average densities do not provide a full picture of health personnel available to the entire population.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 10 values

Nurses and midwives (per 1,000 people) in nearby economies

• Argentina — 4.75 (2023)
• Belize — 2.06 (2023)
• Bolivia — 1.62 (2021)
• Brazil — 5.5 (2023)
• Chile — 5.45 (2023)
• Colombia — 1.54 (2023)
• Costa Rica — 3.07 (2022)
• Cuba — 7.6 (2020)
• Dominican Republic — 2.06 (2023)
• Ecuador — 2.51 (2018)
• El Salvador

More health data for Barbados

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 5.23% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 5.86% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 23,719 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 16.12% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 24,507 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 18.08% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 48,226 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 17.06% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 5.35% (2025)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Barbados's nurses and midwives (per 1,000 people)?

3.67 in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1995?

It is down 29.38% from 5.19 in 1995 (1.23% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 6.04 in 2000 and the lowest 3.12 in 2018.

How does Barbados rank?

37th highest of 65 economies with data for 2023.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO); Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Country data.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.MED.NUMW.P3, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO); Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Country data Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.