Dr. Duane Blaauw

Duane Blaauw is a South African health systems researcher based at the University of the Witwatersrand, where he has played a leading role in advancing health policy and systems research. His work focuses on human resources for health, labour market dynamics, and the organisation of primary healthcare in low- and middle-income settings. Through long-standing involvement in the WiSDOM cohort study, he has contributed significantly to understanding the training, career trajectories, and workplace experiences of health professionals.

His research examines multiple job holding, nurse practice environments, and early career professional support, highlighting how workplace conditions shape retention, performance, and quality of care. Using discrete choice experiments and advanced quantitative methods, he has generated policy-relevant evidence on regulating dual practice and designing incentives that strengthen public sector retention. This work has informed debates on health workforce governance in South Africa.

Blaauw’s scholarship also addresses service delivery and quality of care, including antibiotic overprescribing, respectful maternity care, HIV prevention delivery models, and the impact of COVID-19 on essential services. By combining experimental, quasi-experimental, and qualitative approaches, his research bridges economics, public health, and health policy, contributing to more equitable and resilient health systems.