Office of Public Health Workforce Development

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Office of Public Health Workforce Development
www.state.ct.us/dph Joxel Garcia, MD,
MBACommissioner
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Labor Issues

• Low unemployment rate nation and statewide
• Average age of professional nurse is 46.5
• 60 of nursing work force works full time
• 23 works part time
• 17 of licensed nurses do not work in the
  profession

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Labor Issues

• CT. Dept. of Labor expected nursing opportunities
  to increase by 33 from 1996 to 2006
• From 1994 to 1999, increase in CT nurses was 2.9
• Student population from CT nursing schools
  declined from 925 in 1994 to 584 in 1999

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Labor Issues

• CT ethnic and racial minorities increased
  significantly in last decade
• Multicultural growth creating market in health
  care industry
• Gender and racial disparities in CT nursing
  professions

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Office of Public Health Workforce Development

• Lies within Commissioners Office
• Study, monitor, and evaluate workforce issues,
  including
• Professional workforce shortages
• Public health worker competencies
• Work in partnership with other interested parties

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Partners

• Centers for Disease Control
• CT Hospital Association
• Local Health Directors
• UCONN
• Departments of Education Labor
• Professional Trade Organizations
• LTC Facilities
• CT Nurses Association
• CT National Guard

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Office Goals

• Enhance public health work force competencies
  through development of a public health work force
  certification program at
• State
• Local
• Institutions of higher education levels

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Office Goals

• Establish marketing program to recruit and retain
  diversified public health workforce

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Office Goals

• Provide direct access to the Office of the
  Commissioner by the
• Community
• Healthcare practitioners/providers
• State agencies
• Institutions of higher learning
• Others
• To address broad range of workforce issues

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Office Goals

• Establish Health Tracks for children starting
  in elementary school and following through
  primary and secondary education
• Collaborative effort with the Department of
  Education and local school systems
• Establish tutorial opportunities

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Office Goals

• Expand information available via Internet
• Web to serve as clearinghouse for health career
  information
• Resource for students, guidance counselors,
  teachers, and public

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Objectives

• Short Term Objectives
• 2 year
• 10 increase in Work Force applications
• 20 increase in urban students applications to
  health care programs
• Forecast Workforce needs
• Data Collection system

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Objectives

• Long Term Objectives
• 5 Years
• Eliminate Nursing Shortage
• Increase by 40 application rate to health care
  fields
• Increase continued education of GED graduates by
  30
• Forecast Market Trends and adjust proactively
• Workforce to match State demographics

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Current Initiatives

• Work Force Data Collection
• High schools
• Higher education
• Market
• Marketing
• Middle High Schools
• Faith Based Institutions
• Community Groups

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Current Initiatives

• Mentoring
• DPH, UCONN, Private Sector
• Internships
• Career Shadowing
• Inner City Work Force Development
• GED programs
• Traditional Schools
• Churches
• House Calls
• Door to Door

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Current Initiatives

• House Calls
• Senior Citizen health education campaign
• Door to Door
• Health education campaign targeted at urban
  communities
• Partnership with urban housing authorities,
  faith-based institutions, community groups, etc
• 2-3 hour events featuring health experts
• each event audience specific

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Keeping Connecticut Healthy
www.state.ct.us/dph Commissioner Joxel Garcia,
MD, MBA