Governor Hochul Announces $646 Million to Recruit and Train Thousands More Healthcare Workers Across New York

Governor Kathy Hochul recently announced three Workforce Investment Organizations (WIO) will receive awards totaling up to $646 million over the next three years to implement the Career Pathways Training (CPT) Program, which will recruit and train thousands of new health, mental health, and social care workers across New York. This program will also provide new career advancement opportunities to many current health care workers throughout the State. The WIO awardees are 1199SEIU Training and Employment Funds, Iroquois Healthcare Association, and the Finger Lakes Performing Provider System. Today's announcement is made possible through the Governor's 1115 New York Health Equity Reform Waiver approved in January.

“The health of every New Yorker depends on a strong, stable, and equitable health care system, and health care workers are its very foundation,” Governor Hochul said. “This investment allows us to continue to retain and grow our health care workforce and ensure we deliver the highest quality health care for New Yorkers.”

To read the full article, click here: Governor Hochul Announces $646 Million to Recruit and Train Thousands More Health Care Workers Across New York | Governor Kathy Hochul (ny.gov)

WNY R-AHEC Celebrates 25th Anniversary

Western New York Rural Area Health Education Center (WNY R-AHEC) celebrated its 25th anniversary in August.

WNY R-AHEC improves the quality of healthcare in our region through workforce development, education, and resources. Their values include community, excellence, innovation, and partnership.

Their vision is a future in which our community is supported by high quality, accessible health resources and a diverse, educated and compassionate workforce.

A wealth of information regarding WNY R-AHEC's programs and ongoing initiatives can be found on their official website: Home - WNY R-AHEC

Pictured are several representatives from Chautauqua Health Network (CHN) and one of WNY R-AHEC's programs coordinators, Jason Fulkerson. Jason provides technical support to the CHN team on implementing the HRSA Rural Public Health Workforce Training Network Program grant. Chautauqua Health Network has also teamed up with WNY R-AHEC to provide Care Coordination training in the Southern Tier West Health Workforce Partnership.

Register Now for Fall Care Coordination Training

Interested in receiving a Care Coordination training certificate?

The Southern Tier West Health Workforce Partnership is now looking for participants to enroll in fall Care Coordination training cohorts. The two available options can be seen below:

Online asynchronous (self-paced) opportunity, offered by Western New York Rural Health Education Center (WNY R-AHEC).
Online synchronous (live) opportunity, offered by CUNY/Lehman College, with the next cohort starting on September 16th.

To learn more about these opportunities and to sign up for the upcoming cohorts, contact Kylea Andreano at kylea.andreano@chq.health by September 6th.

Care Coordination Trainee Spotlight: Dan Potter

Dan Potter has been a Care Coordinator at The Chautauqua Center since 2022. Previously, the Erie native worked as a Case Manager at The Resource Center.

He is in the process of earning his master's degree in mental health counseling from St. Bonaventure University and is looking forward to supporting his community in new ways.

"I studied English as an undergraduate student before finding my way in human services field, so a Care Coordination certificate program at the beginning of my career would have been valuable," Potter said. "I am proud our community has that resource now and glad I was a part of the pilot program."

Dan participated in the Southern Tier West Health Workforce Partnership's review of the WNY R-AHEC care coordination curriculum this past fall and provided recommendations to improve the course that is now available. Thank you, Dan, for participating in this important process!

STWHWP Summer Convening

This past month, members of the Southern Tier West Health Workforce Partnership gathered for the summer quarterly convening.

Representatives from Chautauqua Health Network, Chautauqua Integrated Delivery System, Jamestown Community College, Southern Tier Health Care System, The Chautauqua Center, The Resource Center, and Universal Primary Care were all in attendance.

Discussions were centered on a catchment area-wide workforce data collection effort, resource development surrounding training programs and scholarships, and an upcoming visit from the University of Rochester School of Nursing.

Updates were also provided surrounding implementation of Chautauqua Health Network’s HRSA Rural Public Health Workforce Training Network Program (RPHWTN) grant.

New Report Details RN Shortages in New York Hospitals

Following up on the registered nursing features from previous editions, according to a recent report released by the Center for Health Workforce Studies (CHWS) at the University at Albany’s School of Public Health, New York continues to struggle to bolster its registered nursing (RN) workforce.

Researchers conducted interviews and focus groups with chief nursing executives, human resource experts, and nurse recruiters representing over 50 hospitals across New York State. CHWS also interviewed staff from state and regional hospital associations and analyzed a number of available data sources on the state’s RN workforce.

In Upstate New York, 92.6% respondents said RNs were difficult to recruit and 97.1% said RNs were difficult to retain.

The full article can be found here: New Report Details RN Shortages in New York Hospitals | Center for Health Workforce Studies (chwsny.org)

Resources and Training Credits

Rural Community Health Worker Programs: Proving Value and Finding Sustainability

The latest feature article in The Rural Monitor features four rural health care organizations describing the impact of their community health worker programs and strategies for sustaining them. The article can be found here: Rural Community Health Worker Programs: Proving Value and Finding Sustainability - The Rural Monitor (ruralhealthinfo.org)

WNY R-AHEC Continuing Education

The Western New York Rural Area Health Education Center (WNY R-AHEC) has a few new offerings for continuing education:

Trauma Informed Care Webinar – This one-hour webinar was recorded on May 1, 2024, as part of the AHEC Health Equity Series. Deb Rhoades (LCSW, CASAC-M, CARC) presents on defining trauma and trauma experiences, understanding re-traumatization and ways it can occur, and guiding principles of trauma-informed care. Credit available for Social Work, LMHC, OT, PT, and Speech Language Pathology. This course can be taken at no cost on our learning site, https://r-ahec.ispringmarket.com/marketplace

Professionalism In the Workplace – This one-hour self-paced course is ideal for any organization that is looking to train staff that are new to a healthcare office setting. The course focuses on professional values and appearance, communication, conflict, professional use of technology, health literacy, cultural competency, boundaries, and privacy. If you would like to know more about the course please contact Jason Fulkerson, jfulkerson@r-ahec.org

If your organization is interested in offering continuing education credit for your training events, WNY R-AHEC is an approved provider of credit through the New York State Education’s State Boards for Social Work (#SW-0685), Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Mental Health Practitioners (#MHC-0268), and Speech Language Pathology.

Contact Jason Fulkerson at jfulkerson@r-ahec.org for more information.

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Issue 2408