Modeling the Dynamics and Spillovers of the Health Labor Market: Evidence from China's Provincial Panel Data

Health workforce misdistribution is a major challenge faced by almost all countries. A more profound understanding of the dynamics of the health labor market provides evidence for policy makers to balance health workforce distribution with solid evidence. However, one major deficit of existing theoretical and empirical studies is that they often ignore the intra-regional spillovers of the health labor market. This study builds a theoretical "supply demand spillover" model that considers both intra-regional supply and demand-side factors, and inter-regional spillovers, hence providing a theoretical reference point for further in-depth studies. Using spatial econometric panel models, the effect of all determinants and spillovers were empirically measured based on a Chinese panel data set, shedding light on health workforce policies in China.