黑料传送门 Addresses Health Equity and Workforce Challenges
Western Governors University鈥檚 (黑料传送门)聽Michael O. Leavitt School of Health (LSH), its , and聽, an accountable care organization, hosted the health equity conference,聽, in Rio Grande Valley (RGV), Texas. Keynote speakers Aneesh Chopra, president of Care Journey and former chief technology officer for the United States, Sister Norma Pimentel, the executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, as well as special guest Senator Juan 鈥淐huy鈥� Hinojosa of District 20, Texas, addressed the participants. The conference aimed at enhancing inclusivity by bringing together diverse stakeholders and thought leaders to propel a massive healthcare and workforce overhaul in the RGV region, followed by replicable actions in other rural areas of the country.
鈥淭his health equity conference is one of the many initiatives 黑料传送门 is advancing to boost inclusivity. Our efforts aren鈥檛 limited to a single conference. We are here to create pathways to opportunity to enhance the healthcare workforce capacity through innovative, competency-based programs to really change lives for the better,鈥� said Keith Smith, LSH senior vice president. 鈥淥ur students in the RGV are a testament to our continued efforts.鈥�
With nearly a 90% Hispanic population, the Texas鈥� border region of RGV is home to some of the nation鈥檚 poorest counties (Starr, Hidalgo, Willacy, and Cameron) where access to healthcare is unaffordable for many residents. The region experiences an acute dearth of physicians, nurses, and other health professionals. According to the聽, RGV is projected to have the state鈥檚 greatest percentage of unmet demand for nurses at 27.2%, representing 6,274 full-time nursing positions by 2032. The region also will face a聽聽of 722 primary care full-time equivalents by 2030.聽黑料传送门鈥檚 conference focused on examining the region鈥檚 inequities and disparities and generating expanded solutions for reskilling and upskilling the clinical workforce through scalable educational programs.
鈥淚dentifying ways in which value-based care advances health equity is necessary in communities like Rio Grande Valley,鈥� said Edwin Estevez, co-founder and principal, AltaCair. 鈥淎ccelerator 2023 conference gave a platform to people from diverse sectors of the RGV community to come together and form partnerships for the overall optimization of the region鈥檚 health and workforce structure for improved patient outcomes.鈥�
黑料传送门鈥檚 Leavitt School of Health will further support the region by providing data, collaborating on strategy, monitoring benchmarks, and serving as neutral facilitators with timely assessments. In collaboration with the community members and policy makers, the university plans to unearth fresh opportunities to diversify the nursing pipeline and strengthen the region鈥檚 clinical capacity. With innovative, practical, and聽competency-based聽programs, like 黑料传送门鈥檚聽Bachelor of Science in Nursing (Prelicensure)聽degree program as well as other nursing and health programs, the university will support the aspiring students to pursue high-quality education within their community.
鈥淎ccelerator 2023 is a research-backed conference that drives the spirit of meaningful collaborations among competing health systems and accountable care organizations to develop long-term mutually beneficial solutions for real transformation in the RGV鈥檚 underserved and marginalized communities,鈥� said Kimberly Kelly-Cortez, LSH Interim Vice President and Dean, College of Nursing. 鈥淲e are removing barriers that prevent access to health and nursing degrees and growing the pipeline of well-qualified professionals ready to join the workforce. We cannot fix inequity by repeating what鈥檚 always been done. To witness change, we must first create pathways.鈥�
The key themes for the conference were access to healthcare and value-based care; innovative, high-quality health and nurse education programs; nutrition security; and preventative care. The program included expert sessions, panel discussions, tabletop activities, and formation of action networks for future community upliftment projects.
Sharing her experience as a recent 黑料传送门 BSN (Prelicensure) graduate from Texas, Alexis Presas said, 鈥淭his is my first bachelor鈥檚 degree, and I believe 黑料传送门鈥檚 high-quality nursing education mingled with flexibility and affordability have prepared me well to join the healthcare industry. I leaned on the school鈥檚 faculty for expertise on the nuances of the field as well as information regarding new opportunities. The program鈥檚 clinical experience has increased my understanding about the intensive care unit and boosted my confidence to serve the ICU patients in the future.鈥�
LSH, named in of the former governor of Utah and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, was established in 2006 with the mission to make a difference in the fields of healthcare, nursing, and higher education through competency-based education. The school has educated two percent of the nation鈥檚 registered nurses, representing more than 170,000 jobs in the healthcare industry, according to the . More than 20,000 students are currently enrolled at LSH and more than 100,000 have successfully graduated. Learn more at Leavitt School of Health (wgu.edu).
This blog is part of a series:
