Notable Happenings

Our recent projects are advancing the conversation around veterans in healthcare occupations, entry-level workers in healthcare delivery, and the behavioral health workforce in Washington.

Recently Released HRSA-Funded Health Workforce Center Reports

Characteristics of Veterans in Allied Health Occupations
UW CHWS celebrated Veterans Day by releasing a new report on veterans in allied health occupations. Led by Director Bianca Frogner, this study found that veterans were generally underrepresented in allied health occupations—and that male veterans working in healthcare were older, more educated and in higher-skilled occupations than female veterans, who tend to be younger, less educated, and clustered in lower-skilled occupations. While healthcare offers many entry-level opportunities, further work is needed to recruit veterans into allied health occupations and to ensure that they have a career pathway that aligns with their military training and experience, which we discussed in another report released earlier this year. The study was funded by the Health Workforce Research Center on Allied Health cooperative agreement grant from the Bureau of Health Workforce in the Health Resources and Services Administration.

Read the policy brief and full report.

Comparing the Socioeconomic Well-Being of Workers across Healthcare Occupations
Which occupations in healthcare are considered “good quality” jobs that pay well and provide opportunities for career advancement? UW CHWS investigators grappled with this question in a new study examining the socioeconomic well-being of healthcare workers with a focus on those in low-skilled occupations that are increasingly used in the delivery of healthcare. Among their main findings: many individuals working in low-skilled healthcare occupations lacked health insurance, especially part-time workers in ambulatory and long-term care settings. Among those in occupations requiring a high school degree or less, 26.3% relied on the Earned Income Tax Credit, 18.2% relied on Medicaid and 18.7% relied on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Long-term care settings have the highest proportion of individuals working in occupations requiring a high school degree or less, and 80% of these individuals relied on one or more of these three programs. Our research will inform workforce planners and policymakers about the financial risks and their need for state/federal assistance challenges facing healthcare workers that need to be addressed in order to support and retain a robust health workforce. The study was funded by the Health Workforce Research Center on Allied Health cooperative agreement grant from the Bureau of Health Workforce in the Health Resources and Services Administration.

Read the policy brief and full report.

Shaping the Conversation about the Behavioral Health Workforce

UW CHWS Director Bianca Frogner and Deputy Director Sue Skillman have been actively engaged in projects to shape the discussion on the behavioral health workforce. Ms. Skillman and UW CHWS research scientist Rachelle McCarty, in collaboration with the Washington State Workforce Board, gathered input from key informants (40 were interviewed from around the state) and stakeholders to produce an assessment of the behavioral health workforce in Washington. They presented their findings and recommendations to a Washington State Legislative Committee in Olympia, WA on November 22, 2016. Read the Phase I findings and recommendations, and key informant interview findings. Over the next year, Phase II of the project will examine supporting data and explore solutions to the workforce-related barriers to accessing behavioral health care in Washington.   

Dr. Frogner was invited by the Board on Children, Youth, and Families in the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine to plan a workshop titled, “Training the Future Child Healthcare Workforce to Improve Behavioral Health Outcomes for Children, Youth, and Families.” At the event, which took place on November 29-30, 2016 in Washington, DC, panelists and participants listened to individuals and families talk about their behavioral health needs, explored the current supply of and training programs for healthcare providers to meet those needs, and discussed challenges as well as potential solutions for creating the workforce needed to improve children’s behavioral health.

Sentinel Network Findings Shared with American Hospital Association

UW CHWS’ project to detect emerging health workforce demand changes in Washington state was the topic of a webinar presented by Deputy Director Sue Skillman to the American Hospital Association’s Workforce Liaisons group on November 10, 2016. Washington’s Health Workforce Sentinel Network project is gathering demand data three times a year from the state’s healthcare employers and assisting education, training, policy and practice stakeholders to identify and respond to workforce needs as they appear.

Recent Publications & Presentations

CHWS researchers address policy-relevant health workforce questions and disseminate findings through reports, journal articles, and presentations that inform local, national, and international stakeholders and policy makers.

Recent Publications
(Bold = UW CHWS Investigators)

Peer-Reviewed Publications

Roberts FA, DiMarco AC, Skillman SM, Mouradian WE. Growing the dental workforce to serve rural communities: University of Washington’s RIDE program. Generations: Journal of the American Society on Aging. Nov 2016. 40(3):79-84.

Frogner BK, and Skillman SM. Pathways to Middle-skill Allied Health Care Occupations. Issues in Science & Technology. 2016. Fall Issue: 52-57.

Miller SC, Frogner BK, Saganic LM, Cole AM, Rosenblatt R. Affordable Care Act Impact on Community Health Center Staffing and Enrollment: A Cross-Sectional Study. Journal of Ambulatory Care Management. Oct 2016. 39(4):299-307.

Kaplan L, Klein TA, Skillman SM, Andrilla CHA. Faculty supervision of NP program practicums: A comparison of rural and urban site differences. The Nurse Practitioner. 2016 July, 41(7):36-42. Jul 2016.

Lutfiyya MN, Tomai L, Frogner B, Cerra F, Zismer D, Parente S. Does primary care diabetes management provided to Medicare patients differ between primary care physicians and nurse practitioners? Journal of Advanced Nursing. Sep 2016. [Epub ahead of print].

Pittman P, Masselink L, Bade L, Frogner B, Ku L. Factors Determining Medical Staff Configurations in Community Health Centers: CEO Perspectives. Journal of Healthcare Management. Sep 2016. 61(5):364-377.

Reports

Gattman N, Reule R, Balassa A, Skillman SM, McCarty RL, Schwartz M. Washington's Behavioral Health Workforce Assessment: Project Phase I. Fall. Washington State Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board, Nov 2016.

Frogner BK, Skillman SM, Snyder CR. Characteristics of Veterans in Allied Healthcare Occupations. Center for Health Workforce Studies, University of Washington, Nov 2016.

McCarty RL, Schwartz MR, Skillman SM. Washington’s Behavioral Health Workforce Assessment: Input from Key Informants. Center for Health Workforce Studies, University of Washington, Nov 2016.

Presentations

Skillman SM. Washington State’s Health Workforce Sentinel Network. Webinar presented to the American Hospital Association, Allied Association – Workforce Liaisons. Nov 10, 2016

Gattman N, Skillman SM, McCarty R. Washington State behavioral health workforce analysis. Oral presentation to the Washington State Select Committee on Quality Improvement in State Hospitals. Nov 22, 2016, Olympia, WA.

Snyder CR. “Racism, Microaggressions, and Multiracial Families in the Health Care Setting.” Centers for Comparative and Health Systems Effectiveness (CHASE) Work in Progress Speaker Series. Seattle, WA. Oct 24, 2016.

Patterson DG, Frogner BK. “Immigrants in Health Care Jobs: Divergent Paths.” Poster at International Health Workforce Collaborative. Washington, DC. Oct 26, 2016.

Allen S, Skillman SM. “Building a Sustainable Rural Primary Care Workforce in the U.S.: The WWAMI Approach.” Poster at International Health Workforce Collaborative. Washington, DC. Oct 26, 2016.

Patterson DG. “IHWC 2016 Technical Skills Day .” Oral presentation at International Health Workforce Collaborative. Washington, DC. Oct 24, 2016.

Skillman SM. Washington State’s Health Workforce Sentinel Network. Presented to the Washington State Health Workforce Council, Renton, WA. Sep 20, 2016.

LeRouge C, Sayer G, Rubenstein LV, Frogner BK, Snyder CR, Sangameswaran S. “Evaluation of the VA Clinic Practice Management Model Implementation: Promoting a Healthcare Data Informed Culture to Improve Access.” Guest lecture at the University of Washington Department of Health Services Doctoral Seminar, Seattle, WA. Oct 12, 2016.

Skillman SM. “Washington State’s health workforce: (1) Physicians and (2) Washington’s Health Workforce Sentinel Network.” Oral presentation at Washington Association of Community and Migrant Health Centers Workforce Committee meeting, Tacoma, WA. Jul 29, 2016.

Skillman SM. “Washington State’s Health Workforce Sentinel Network.” Oral presentation at the Registered Nurse Supply and Demand Forecasting Meeting. Rainbow Ranch, Big Sky, MT. Jul 21, 2016.

You can find a full list of our publications and presentations on our website.