Despite efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid expansion has increased access to primary care, as well as the availability of behavioral health services, including treatment for both mental health and substance use disorders. However, increasing the availability of health and behavioral health services requires an increase in providers. Several federal programs support training…
In the initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic, health care decision-makers in North Carolina needed information about the available health workforce in order to conduct workforce surge planning and to anticipate concerns about professional or geographic workforce shortages. This article describes how data was used in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in North…
The Mullan Institute estimates that between now and March 20, 2021, 7% of counties in the USwill experience hospital workforce staffing strains due to COVID-19 hospitalizations. Using new county-level projections of COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU occupancy provided, it is estimated that 209 counties will need to implement crisis workforce strategies. This involves tiered staffing strategies…
Since health professionals began administering 2 FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines in December 2020, the rollout has encountered several challenges and failed to meet initial targets for total vaccinations provided. The current health workforce has been identified as one possible bottleneck for distributing the vaccine, prompting a general call to authorize as many health care professionals to…
In response to the drastically increased demand for health services caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, many states adjusted their regulations to expand access to services and assist in the expansion of health workforce capacity. More research needs to be done to understand what kinds of policy changes were made and how they impacted the health…
North Carolina, as a state with a significant Black population and fast-growing Hispanic population, is greatly reflective of national demographic changes. Due to these demographic changes, the US is currently facing challenges to recruit and retain a general surgery workforce that mirrors the population. This article examines the slow and gradual diversification of the surgical…
States responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with a variety of approaches to ensure adequate health workforce capacity as well as strategies to expand access to care for needed services. In order to better understand pandemic issues and challenges faced by states as well as strategies they used to address them, the Health Workforce Technical Assistance…
The COVID-19 pandemic created a rapid change in care environments without sufficient training or support for most. For the healthcare system to be able to properly respond to the pandemic, as well as future public health challenges, there is a need for greater access to guidelines, training tools, and other support for patient care. This…
Little is known about the job satisfaction of licensed clinical social workers (LCSWs) participating in the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) federal Loan Repayment Program (LRP). Employee satisfaction in organizations is important for organizational well-being and to decrease turnover. This article examines the work and practice satisfaction of LCSWs participating in the NHSC LRP. Findings…
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a dynamic effect on the health workforce. Redeployment, furlough, and layoff are among the terms used to describe various work statuses. Some terms are related and overlapping, potentially causing confusion for employees, media, policymakers, and researchers who may be interested in tracking health care employment trends throughout the pandemic. This…