CT Health Newsletters
University of Connecticut Health Center
Connecticut Health Signature Program Newsletter
Issue Five - Spring 2003
www.connecticuthealth.org
FOCUS ON: HEALTH CARE WORKFORCE SHORTAGE
UConn Dental School Addressing Provider Shortages
On September 5, 2002, the UConn School of Dental Medicine learned that
it would be one of ten U.S. dental schools to receive a grant for up to
$1.5 million from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The award from the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Pipeline Profession & Practice:
Community-Based Dental Education initiative will allow the UConn Dental
School to deepen existing community-based dental services in underserved
communities and to address dental provider shortages while boosting
underrepresented minority and low-income student enrollment numbers.
During the last part of the 20th century, the American dental
profession made great progress in controlling caries and lessening the
prevalence of periodontal disease in the United States. Despite these
advancements, there are large segments of the American population that
do not have access to basic oral health services: those living in poor
rural or urban communities, new Americans, the institutionalized, and
the elderly.
The May 2000, Surgeon General's report "Oral Health in America"
pointed out the need to reexamine the levels of diversity in the
professional workforce and linked a more diverse dental profession to
the goal of improving the oral health of underserved populations.
Moreover, the American Dental Association's "Future of Dentistry Report"
also highlighted the need to improve diversity within the profession,
and indicated that there has been a drop in the number of applicants to
dental school by African-American and Hispanic students over the last
part of the 20th century.
This Robert Wood Johnson Foundation initiative is designed to target
oral health disparities and address the nation's shortage of dental care
providers, particularly those treating underserved populations.
Implementation of the program at UConn will take place over the next
five years, centering around enhanced recruitment of underrepresented
students, curriculum revision, and increased community-based clinical
training - with significantly more time spent serving underserved
populations in community settings.
For more information, contact Dr. Monty MacNeil at (860) 679-3212 or
macneil@nso.uchc.edu or visit
the RWJF program website at
http://dentalpipeline.columbia.edu/.
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The UConn Health Center is active in virtually all 169 Connecticut
towns and works to meet a wide range of community and public health
needs.
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CT AHEC Program and Health Career Recruitment
The Connecticut Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) program is
designed to enhance access to quality health care, particularly primary
and preventative care, by improving the supply and distribution of
health care professionals through community/academic partnerships. It is
based at the UConn School of Medicine and is implemented through four
regional centers in Bridgeport, Hartford, Norwich, and Torrington.
The Connecticut AHEC Program sponsors a wide range of programs
designed to recruit under-represented minority and disadvantaged
students into health careers. AHEC activities range in scope from brief
overviews of specific health careers to month-long summer health career
camps to yearlong health career clubs. In 2002, the AHEC's health
careers programming served over 3,000 students, teachers, and parents in
60 schools throughout Connecticut.
In addition, the AHEC Program produced a comprehensive guide to
health careers in Connecticut. Designed both for students and adults
considering a career change, the guide provides information on 88 health
professions and includes all health professions' training programs in
Connecticut.
Future activities will include training on health careers for
guidance counselors and teachers. Participants will be taught to
recognize students' aptitudes and interests related to the health
careers and to appropriately advise student about career opportunities.
For more information, contact the Connecticut AHEC Program at (860)
679-7968 or
huntington@adp.uchc.edu.
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Greetings from the UConn Health Center!
As a state-supported institution, the UConn Health Center is
committed to applying its resources to the needs of the citizens of
Connecticut - and this includes the needs of the legislature!
On behalf of our faculty and staff, I would like to extend an offer
of assistance. Whether you need consultation on a complex health issue
or assistance in developing health-related and scientifically sound
legislation, our faculty and staff would welcome the opportunity to
support you and your staff in tackling our state's health and public
health concerns.
Peter J. Deckers, M.D.
Executive Vice President
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Highlights -Did you know . . . ?
Connecticut's nursing shortage will grow to a staggering 55 percent
vacancy rate by 2020.
The hospital vacancy rate for radiation therapists has increased from
three percent in 1997, to over 20 percent in 2002.
Connecticut's nursing shortage is estimated to be the fifth worst in
the nation.
In 1990, 3% of physicians in CT were Latino, as opposed to the
percentage in the general population, 8%.
** Source: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
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Connecticut Health Care Workforce Coalition
The Connecticut Health Care Workforce Coalition is the largest and
broadest group of organizations with an interest in the adequacy of the
state's health care workforce. The Coalition's mission is to ensure that
a diverse workforce meets the changing health needs of the people of
Connecticut.
Connecticut's widespread and worsening shortages in the nursing,
pharmacy, and allied health professions requires a sustained and
comprehensive set of approaches. The Connecticut Health Care Workforce
Coalition investigates and recommends a range of programs to address the
underlying causes of health care workforce shortages.
The negative consequences of widespread workforce shortages are both
systemic and self-propagating. Shortages lead to increased stress on the
job and to unavoidable overtime. Frequent overtime ultimately leads to
provider burnout, resignation, and, in turn, to worsening shortages.
Within a health care institution, shortages in one discipline lead to
shortages in other disciplines. Similarly, shortages in one level of
care (e.g., home care) can lead to shortages in other levels of care
(e.g., hospitals).
Addressing widespread, persistent, and worsening shortages in the
nursing, pharmacy, and allied health professions requires a
comprehensive and sustained effort.
The coalition seeks to:
-Address both the recruitment and retention of a diverse and
well-prepared health care workforce that responds to the changing needs
of the people of Connecticut.
-Address health care workforce shortages over the long term by
increasing the supply of nurses, pharmacists, and allied health
professionals.
-Ensure the ongoing collection and analysis of data relevant to the
efforts to address health care workforce issues.
For more information, contact Charles Huntington at (860) 679-7968 or
huntington@adp.uchc.edu.
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“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will
not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius
will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education alone will
not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and
determination alone are omnipotent.”
- Calvin Coolidge -
Connecticut Health
University of Connecticut Health Center
263 Farmington Avenue
Farmington, CT 06030-3967
Phone: (860) 679-3236
Fax: (860) 679-1101
Email: kpasquale@nso1.uchc.edu
www.connnecticuthealth.org
END OF NEWSLETTER
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