Leading the Way

Research is a critical component of the Institute's work. We need solid information to develop programs that work. For the past seven years, the Institute has surveyed hospitals about work force issues. This has become a valuable tool in determining where training dollars should be invested to meet hospital needs. In 2008, the Institute partnered with the Washington Association of Community & Migrant Health Centers to publish a community health center work force survey.

The Institute is interested in expanding our research to include information about the state of the health care work force across health care providers and across disciplines. New areas for expansion include the addition of long term care centers and projections for six occupations that are the most critical and where information is lacking:  physicians, pharmacists, physical and occupational therapists, imaging specialists, and physician assistants.  Producing these now will allow us to both chart expansion of college and university health care training and education programs as well as provide the industry with long-term forecasts of the number of available workers.