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Home > Rural Workforce > Project Findings
Project Findings
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Below is an overview of the Strategic Plan for Regional Action by Focus Areas and Priority Goal Development. Our

  1. Pipeline Expansion

    Focus Areas:
    • Improve guidance counselors understanding of high school classes and the necessary preparation for health careers
    • Develop post high school, preparatory classes
    • Develop post career ladders (entry level CNA)
    • Develop regional dental school or develop/improve reciprocal agreements
    • Expand rural residency programs, across state placements
    • Increase faculty capacity
    • Promote collaboration among hospitals and universities to develop joint appointment of staff/faculty
    • Regional marketing for students to enter health careers

    Priority Goals:
    • Goal #1: Increase health careers awareness, understanding and interest in entering a health career through the development and implementation of a regional marketing campaign.

    • Goal #2: Develop regional health profession advisors in primary, secondary and university environments who help provide health career information, resources and mentoring.

  2. Improve Recruitment and Retention

    Focus Areas:
    • Improve cross state licensing and credentialing
    • Promote culture change to improve workplace environment
    • Improve reimbursement
    • Develop shared training opportunities
    • Engage in group purchasing with headhunter firms
    • Develop regional marketing for health professionals to come to New England
    • Explore job redesign to keep older staff (nursing)
    • Engage hospitals to support recruitment for rural practices
    • Promote successful models such as recruitable communities
    • Maintain Federal designations for J-1, NHSC etc.

    Priority Goals:
    • Goal #1: Develop programs to assist newly recruited healthcare professionals to adjust to rural areas. Post degree completion.

    • Goal #2: Increase rural rotations and other onsite clinical programs in rural areas.

    • Goal #3: Develop regional continuing education programs which are accessible to all medical professionals (tele/distance education).

    • Goal #4: Increase the number of health care professionals indicating an interest in relocation to rural New England.

  3. Coordinate Workforce Activities

    Focus Areas:
    • Assist with state coordination of workforce activities
    • Assist with regional coordination of workforce activities -- governors, New England Board of Higher Education, regional medical society meetings, AHECs, PCOs etc
    • Develop regional website, locus of information regarding New England development, recruitment and retention activities including best practices.
    • US Dept of Labor WIRED initiatives want to fund multistate activities, develop cross state proposals

    Priority Goals:
    • Goal #1: Inventory, analyze and report healthcare workforce recruitment, retention and development activities across the New England region..

    • Goal #2: Raise visibility of rural healthcare workforce as a priority policy issue.

  4. Improve Data

    Focus Areas:
    • Development of regional reports (comparison of workforce data, resources across regions)
    • Development of communication tools regarding healthcare workforce, promoting models like Rural Health Works to help states communicate issues and related data
    • Understand demand and production

    Priority Goals:
    • Goal #1: Identify workforce indicator reporting standards that support the quality, utility, ease of use and communication of workforce data by and for stakeholders.

  5. Examine Scope of Practice

    Focus Areas:
    • Hold forums regarding the design of health care professions and service delivery to recommend changes in scopes of practice
    • Models for use of PAs and NPs

To learn more:

  • View the entire Project Findings (PDF/94KB) including Lessons learned, Qualitative and Quantitative data, State similarities and differences, complete Focus Areas and Priority Goal Development for Regional Action and the Strategic Planning Process.

  • View State Strategic Action Plans:
    • Connecticut (PDF/41KB)
    • Rhode Island (PDF/29KB)
    • Massachusetts (PDF/27KB)
    • New Hampshire (PDF/27KB)
    • Maine (PDF/30KB)
    • Vermont (PDF/36KB)
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