The Healthcare Innovation Congress (thINc360)
May 22-25, 2022
Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor
Baltimore, MD
Lear more at https://bit.ly/HCInnovationCongress 

John Voket, Director of Public Affairs, For The People interviewed Marcia Proto in February 2022.  This podcast aired on Connecticut's Connoisseur Media.  Listen to the Podcast!  

Marcia Proto, Executive Director of CT League for Nursing and Connecticut Center for Nursing Workforce, discusses Connecticut's challenges to maintain a robust nursing workforce and the recent collaboration with CTData and the Nursing Data Portal.  

Wendy Garvin Mayo, an engaged member of the CT League for Nursing Board of Directors, is part of this AMAZING project, The 8 Qualities of the EXCEPTIONAL Black Woman in Business and Entrepreneurship.
 
This is a reference book designed to give “voice” to women business owners, especially those women of color.
 
There are many successful black women business owners that have cracked the code of surpassing racial, gender, financial and generational roadblocks, however, we have been “conditioned” to keep those solutions “privately” amongst ourselves. There are numerous reasons why, and we will UNAPOLOGETICALLY explore, reveal, and challenge the "status quo" of the current business landscapes in existence today!
 
Get Your Copy Today at
https://www.paypal.com/instantcomm.../checkout/BTKKC3BKZ5D9S

Both COVID restrictions and a decrease in available clinical placements needed by RN and LPN students to graduate encumbers the expansion of nursing schools in Connecticut and nationwide. 

​A new analysis by the Connecticut Data Collaborative and the Center for Nursing Workforce reveals that of the 86,483 nurses that have a current license in Connecticut, only about half that number - 44,086 - are actively practicing in Connecticut. 

Of that number, 36,953 are registered nurses (RN) and 7,130 are licensed practical nurses (LPN). Of the 42,397 who are licensed but not actively practicing in Connecticut, approximately 20% practice in another state, with the highest number working in New York (1,297), Massachusetts (918), and Florida (591).
The data indicates that 7,917 nurses are age 60 or older, while only 4,390 are under age 30. The data also shows that RNs and LPNs in Connecticut have an overall median age of 47. RNs are most likely to be in the 50-59 age band, while LPNs are most likely to be in the 30-39 age band.

“An alarm bell should be ringing. Connecticut does not have nearly the number of younger nurses needed to replace those who will be retiring within this decade. We must monitor and act on these data and current trends, which have been exacerbated by the pandemic,” said Marcia Proto, M.Ed, CAS, Executive Director of the Connecticut Center for Nursing Workforce (CCNW) and the Connecticut League for Nursing (CLN). “We really haven’t moved the needle on what needs to be done.”
In the state workforce, the majority of nurses identified as White (75%), followed by Black (12%) and Hispanic or Latino (6%).* Overall, there were 40,401 responses (33,920 RNs and 6,481 LPNs) to the race and ethnicity data survey question.
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“This is what informed, data-based decision-making is all about. The data revealed by this project is clearly important as it impacts public health, education and jobs, and the partnership forged between CCNW and CTData reaffirms both organizations’ commitments to make data easily accessible and encourages stakeholders to use the data for action and strengthen their strategies,” said Michelle Riordan-Nold, Executive Director of the Connecticut Data Collaborative.

The Connecticut Data Collaborative (CTData) is a public-private partnership that advocates for the public availability of open and accessible data, serving nonprofits, advocates,
policymakers, community groups, and funders in using data to drive policy and improve programs and services, budgeting and decision making at the state, regional and local levels.
Of the RNs actively practicing in Connecticut, 55% have earned a baccalaureate degree, 20% have earned a master’s degree and 2% have earned a doctoral degree. Among LPNs, who are not required to obtain an associate’s or baccalaureate degree, 18% have earned an associate’s, 7% a baccalaureate and 1% a master’s degree. LPNs are required to graduate from a state-approved certificate program and pass a national licensing exam to receive their LPN license.
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Only about 1 in 4 LPNs have pursued higher education after receiving their license, which points to one of the workforce challenges facing Connecticut. Among students pursing nursing, 66% of those in RN programs are White and 23% are Black or Hispanic. The numbers are substantially different in LPN programs, where 51% of students are Black, 20% are Hispanic and 17% are White. Many individuals who have earned an LPN, and who might otherwise be interested in advancing to RN, are unable to do so because of their own limited financial resources or the limited availability of slots in RN programs in Connecticut. That prevents the state from achieving greater diversity among RNs and limits the total number of RNs working in Connecticut, in a variety of healthcare settings, amidst increasing need.

​The National FORUM of State Nursing Workforce Centers is excited to announce the details of their 2022 Annual Conference.
 
Swing For The Fences:  Changing The Nursing Workforce Game
June 20-22, 2022  |  Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas, NV
 

The Connecticut Center for Nursing Workforce (CCNW) is one of the lead sponsors for this year's 3-day event.  Come Join Us!
 
The 2022 Annual Conference will bring together healthcare leaders from across the country to change the nursing workforce game.  Join us as sponsors to engage attendees as they learn and discuss innovative ways to approach: recruitment & retention; models of nursing education; expansion of public health; nurse well-being; and Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI)  through the lens of data.
 
Sponsorship, exhibitor, and advertising opportunities to connect with this audience are available to fit any budget. You can view all the opportunities on the conference website or review the attached prospectus. If you have any questions, please contact our Sponsorship & Exhibitor Co-chairs.
 
Marcia Proto at Marcia@CTCenterForNursingWorkforce.com 
Laura Chandler at Laura@ColoradoNursingCenter.org

The WHO report cites critical research and references as to why and how Simulation as well as other Virtual learning technologies can transform learning and better prepare our students to meet national competencies and successfully transition to practice thereby limiting the human capital and financial resources that our healthcare settings spend to onboard the new nurse. 
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Access the WHO Report at:  https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/dfigital-education-for-building-health-workforce-capacity-978-92-4-000047-6

This Report was prepared by the National Advisory Council on Nursing Education and Practice.

In their 17th Report to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the US Congress this past December, is meant to inform the Secretary and Congress on Policy matters arising in the administration of Title VIII Funding pertaining to nursing workforce, nursing education and nursing practice.

Nursing Education is in crisis, and it will take ALL of us to stem the tide and expand our educational pipeline capacity!

​Report can be found at:  https://oadn.org/news/nacnep-report-preparing-nurse-faculty-and-addressing-the-shortage-of-nurse-faculty-and-clinical-preceptors/

In early June of 2021, the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action took a first step towards realizing the vision outlined in the National Academy of Medicine’s (NAM) new report, The Future of Nursing 2020 – 2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity. A virtual Summit with 200 key opinion leaders, experts, and change makers across the fields of health care, nursing, business, academia, and social justice participated in the 2-day hands on event. Twenty-eight (28) teams were created to address each of the report’s 54 sub-recommendations (under its nine major recommendations), answered questions including, What multi-sector partnerships are needed to implement this recommendation? and What milestones or benchmarks will tell us we’ve succeeded?
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The result was 54 Draft Action Plans, each with specific tasks, timelines, and goals, that can guide how nursing will help transform health, health care and health equity for all.  Access the action plans and next steps @ https://campaignforaction.org/resources/future-of-nursing-2030-action-hub/

Resources are available for your organizations to utilize via your State Action Coalitions that undertook many initiatives related to the 2020 Future of Nursing Report published by the National Academy of Medicine. Even if your Action Coalition is not active, the national website for the Campaign still has a treasure trove of materials and toolkits refenced for your use- All free of charge.

In Connecticut, as one of the statewide initiatives via our Coalition, a 4- module online self-paced Population Health Course was created and launched. Although the activities and monies to support the Coalition have waned, The Board of the CT League for Nursing made a commitment to keep the course up and running with a major content revision and update competed in this past July.  This Course can be accessed at: www.CLNOnlineEducation.com
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National Campaign resources can be found at:  https://campaignforaction.org/resources/#p=1

In the executive summary of this report, six out of eight priorities for nurse-led transformation directly correlate to the issues that you've identified in your thinktank white paper.  These include:
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• Designing new models of care
• Empowering nurses to lead
• Cultivating the pipeline of new nurses
• Prioritizing well-being in mental health
• Enhanced partnerships with academia
• Building a Workforce for tomorrow- Planning at the regional & national levels

Report can be found at:  https://nursing.jnj.com/accelerating-nursing-transforming-healthcare