How 3 states are putting their money where their healthcare workforce shortages are

Ingenuity meets investment in CA, CO, KS. Plus: July’s big surge in healthcare jobs & the 6 HC occupations on the list of fastest-growing jobs this decade

First up: Have you seen the July jobs data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics? 

Here’s a short version, as it relates to healthcare: 

The industry added 63,000 new jobs in July — well above the average monthly gain of 51,000 in the prior 12 months, according to the latest jobs report. 

The biggest growth came from ambulatory healthcare services, with 35,400 jobs added in July. Hospitals also picked up their hiring pace a little, and as did nursing and residential care facilities, home healthcare services, and physician offices. Meanwhile, the overall number of jobs added in July (all industries) actually dropped a little from the month before. 

OK, So Healthcare Has Lots of Jobs, But Which Ones Are Growing the Most?

Did you know that nurse practitioner is the No. 1 fastest-growing job across all industries, nationwide?

Between 2021 and 2031, BLS predicts that the following 30 occupations will see the greatest growth (percentage change) — and one industry (take a WILD guess) shows up more than any other, with six jobs on the list:

• # 1. Nurse practitioners, whose ranks are projected to grow by 45.7% to 359,400 by 2031.

• # 15. Medical and health services manager positions

• #17. Physician assistants

• #20. Physical therapist assistants

• #23. Occupational therapy assistants 

• #24. Home health and personal care aides 

These States are Putting Their Money (and Ingenuity) Where The Workforce Shortages Are

While we wait to see which (if any) healthcare workforce legislation actually passes Congress and is funded, a handful of states are already finding success with their own initiatives. 

Let’s take a look at a few noteworthy examples that are opening doors to healthcare career-starters, making high-paying jobs in the field more accessible, and growing the talent pool for healthcare employers:

California Knows How to … Invest in HC Workforce Expansion

California, whose 2023 budget pledged $1.52 billion to healthcare workforce programs, is attacking their shortages across nearly every front:

• New behavioral health provider and staff training programs 

• A new psychiatry loan repayment program to support the state hospital psychiatry workforce

• $281 million over three years to recruit, train and certify community health workers

• $135 million to build career pathways for healthcare professionals through community partners, employers, and labor unions

• $130 million to create pathways into health careers for English Language Learners through the state’s Adult Education Consortia 

• $60 million to train opportunity youth for roles in Emergency Medical Services

That’s no small chunk of change, even for California. I’ll circle back and update y’all after we see how well these programs succeed in recruiting new folks into healthcare careers. 

Colorado’s Wildly Important Goals – and KPIs for Everyone!

Starting last summer, the state of Colorado spent $400 million (FY22-23) on new and expanded healthcare workforce initiatives that are making a measurable dent in the state’s labor shortages, particularly in healthcare jobs. As a result, some are expanding this fall. 

All of Colorado’s recent workforce-building programs fall under the governor’s so-called “Wildly Important Goals” for the healthcare sector, spelled out and tracked through an online progress dashboard. The WIG approach appears far more data-focused and results-oriented than what we are used to seeing from government at any level.

How it started:

The governor’s Operations Team works alongside state agencies to establish these Wildly Important Goals, plan new programs, and track KPIs, which are updated monthly on the progress dashboard. 

(It’s pretty refreshing to see a state-level government office tracking KPIs — finally — the way the business world does. More data-tracking and transparency showing the precise impact of our tax dollars, please!)

How it’s going:

1. The dashboard shows that Colorado did meet its goal of hiring 4,500 licensed and ready direct-care healthcare workers to the state’s workforce by the end of June 2023.

2. A goal to enroll at least 865 adults in healthcare-related training through the Colorado public workforce system was obliterated! The state enrolled just under 4K adults in training programs for healthcare jobs by the end of June.

3. Retention of licensed healthcare workers — another of Polis’ healthcare WIGs — also was improved through the initiative, with the average retention rate rising from 67% in summer 2022 to 78% a year later.

4. Metrics for a few other healthcare goals, such as the vacancy rate among direct care staff at state mental health hospitals, remain a work in progress, according to the dashboard. The vacancy rate for mental health hospital direct care positions was 47% last summer, and it was reduced to 38% by the end of June 2023 — but that’s still a high vacancy rate in a critical care field, and it remains well above the state’s long-term goal of under 15%.

How’d they do it?

Free training and certification programs have played a big role, and now state leaders are going all-in.

Since it launched a year ago, Care Forward Colorado has covered the costs for entry-level healthcare programs at community and technical colleges; more than 3,000 Coloradans have completed programs in emergency medical services, phlebotomy, medical assisting, and other allied health fields facing significant shortages. 

Last month, the governor announced that the free-training initiative has grown significantly to include more skilled positions in healthcare as well as several other fields.

The just-launched Career Advance Colorado program provides no-cost enrollment in community colleges and technical training programs for in-demand jobs through the state’s 19 community and technical colleges. Enrollees do not need transcripts, essays, recommendation letters, or fees to apply — which should entice more people to participate. Funding was set aside to cover costs for at least 20,000 to complete training and certification for jobs with the most critical workforce shortages, including nursing. 

Great Song Alert: While writing this newsletter, one song has been on Repeat in my brain. It’s by the Infamous Stringdusters, one of the best — and most-acclaimed — jam-grass bands on the planet. The track, as you might have guessed, is titled “Colorado.” Enjoy!

New York Embraces Clinical Simulation Training a la AR/VR

New York recently passed a law aimed to ease that state’s nurse shortages by permitting nursing students to complete up to one-third of their clinical training through simulation experiences — one of about 30 states to embrace simulation (based on virtual reality and augmented reality technology) in medical education and training.

Overseen by the New York State Education Department, simulation training gives students “hands-on” experience in clinical environments, and it will enable nursing education programs to offer more clinical options to students.

“Instead of forcing eager students to wait for an open spot in a hospital, expanding simulated training will help clear the logjam, address the shortage, and ensure high quality care for millions of New Yorkers,” the governor’s announcement said.

Kansas’ New Twist on an Old Idea: Apprenticeships 

The Kansas Apprenticeship Act, a bipartisan law that expands apprenticeship programs into sectors not typically participating in that type of on-the-job training model, is already showing results in growing the labor pool in critical-shortage industries, according to a recent report from the state’s Commerce Department.

The Kansas legislature last fall committed $13M a year for tax credits and grants for businesses, healthcare organizations, educational institutions, and nonprofits that implement a Registered Apprenticeship program in their hiring and training.

In the past year alone:

• The number of new apprentices learning on-the-job in Kansas has almost doubled (252 to 473).

• The number of new programs has more than doubled (5 to 12).

• The number of occupations with apprenticeship programs has more than doubled (19 to 47).

The list of apprenticeship positions available in Kansas is loaded with manufacturing and skilled trades positions, and it has grown to include some career fields you don’t typically see offering apprenticeship programs, including healthcare (MedCerts is on the list) and human resources (Society for Human Resource Management is on the list). Employers and nonprofits interested in participating can learn more about grants and tax credits available to apprenticeship providers at https://ksapprenticeship.org.

Perhaps we don’t say this often enough: 

Well played, Kansas.

And speaking of Kansas:
I learned today that three of the musicians who played on the “Rosanna” and “Africa” studio tracks also played on “Dust in the Wind.”
A music journalist asked them why they joined the new band, and they replied: “Toto? We aren’t in Kansas anymore.”
Ha ha!

Shout-out to Healthcare Workforce Report sponsors

The Healthcare Workforce Report newsletter is generously supported by MedCerts.

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