HealthForce Minnesota Partner News
Greetings from HealthForce Minnesota!
As we end our fifth calendar year as a Center of Excellence in Healthcare I am amazed at how far we have come in such a short time. Two years have passed since I took the leadership role at HealthForce Minnesota and daily I continue to learn and be amazed at the talent here in our state and region. The people and resources coming together to accomplish new goals during hard times are personally inspirational.
This fall HealthForce Minnesota made a commitment to leverage federal funds by partnering on four different ARRA Department of Labor grants across the state and region. As of this publication, we continue to wait to hear about the results of these proposals. At a time when so many of us are doing more with less, the Center continues to support innovation by seeking projects that transform education and advance practice. Yes, the total dollar amounts are scaled down, but the work and mission continue.
In January, we will be announcing the latest round of innovation supported by the Center. I hope you see that the projects awarded reflect real lessons and solutions to doing business differently in healthcare and education.
During this season I wish to acknowledge those partnerships and individuals who have brought us to the place we now stand to do this very important work. I encourage you to read these brief stories, and recaps found in our FY09 annual report, and find one or two that may touch your work. Then look to see how these stories and visions can be brought to scale in your communities or institution. There is much work to do. Far more than any one organization or system can do alone. It will take all of us, working closely together to continue this journey.
Jane Foote
Executive Director
HealthForce Minnesota
Action and Innovation are Focus of Annual Meeting and Organization
An industry partner, HealthPartners, hosted the HealthForce Minnesota annual meeting at their Bloomington campus on November 5, 2009. With the help of Executive Alliance member, Jill Bothwell of HealthPartners, we convened our annual meeting for industry education, and community partners from across the state. During the interactive display portion of the meeting, attendees and HealthPartners employees mingled with fiscal year 2009 project leaders. Former Doctorate of Nursing Program students presented their capstone projects, and a teacher, administrative leader, and principal from Bloomington Public Schools brought five students who attended a pilot middle school Scrubs Camp program this past summer to demonstrate their learned health sciences skills.
The mobile simulation lab trailer from Ridgewater College was on-site for touring by both attendees and HealthPartners employees. For those who haven’t had a chance to tour the Sim Lab1, it is a state-of-the-art facility that includes the most advanced patient simulation in the world, the Laerdal 3G mannequin. It also acts as a triage unit to accommodate a disaster.
Each year many exciting success stories are shared during the day’s activities. This year The White Earth Reservation was showcased for its CNA training program it implemented and its high degree of replication potential. The program engages Native American students in healthcare careers by providing assistant nursing training on the reservation and job placement assistance in the community. After this program was offered, 100 percent of the Native American students who took the class are now certified nursing assistants.
Winona State University President Judith Ramaley and other featured project leaders spoke during the meeting. Geoff Bartsh, Director of Government Relations for HealthPartners also shared his views about healthcare reform and how it may impact Minnesota. An informative Q & A session followed.
HealthForce Minnesota Director Jane Foote engaged attendees in visioning ideas for the organization and Minnesota. Participant feedback cards provided good ideas, affirmed what’s been accomplished, and strongly voiced concerns that innovation funding is essential.
Teamwork Makes Accreditation and Clinical Laboratory Sciences Program a Reality
Allina Hospitals is piloting a new on-line clinical laboratory sciences program in fall 2010 to help employees advance their education. To do this, Winona State University (WSU) is seeking accreditation through the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS) to offer a four-year degree in clinical laboratory sciences (CLS). Winona has had a medical technology program for many years, which required their graduates to complete their clinical requirements at other NAACLS accredited facilities. This restricted the number of students based upon limited available clinical sites. By seeking their own NAACLS accreditation, WSU realized they could service many more students educationally. The addition of partnering with Allina clinics and hospitals completes the necessary clinical experience for the NAACLS accredited Clinical Laboratory Science program. “The CLS education commitment will serve the workforce,” said Dr. Judith Loewen, program director for WSU. “It is based on HealthForce Minnesota’s financial assistance, nationwide health industry requirements and WSU support.”
Allina saw a tremendous response for the program when more than 200 employees attended the introductory meetings. Allina employees who choose to pursue their four-year degree will be given competency equivalencies based upon their professional certifications, their job description and areas of work experience. Using those individual criteria and work skill evaluations for each student, means students will not have to take unnecessary courses.
“To complete their four-year degree, employees will take on-line courses, but they also will learn needed, specific skills through concentrated lab sessions during certain weekends,” Loewen said. “Although students may take a couple of years to complete their four-year degrees, they’ll be treated individually as each one takes courses unique to their requirements. WSU will come to the metro area to accommodate the laboratory component of the coursework. We’re working with St. Paul College to offer lab sessions at their facilities.”
This is a key program for Allina and its employees as they look forward to address retention and anticipated future retirement of their clinical laboratory science staff. Allina is showing commitment to its employees by offering this advanced education program and working with flexible work schedules. In addition to advance clinical course work, theory and clinical levels of practice, employees will be taught laboratory management skills, supervisory and administrative skills, and critical thinking outcomes. Employees will also have the potential to enhance their earning power and will be qualified for future job opportunities.
This educational program will be beneficial for other laboratory personnel that are not Allina staff. Since it has such an individual approach, any laboratory professional or science graduate who wants to pursue the CLS degree could participate in the WSU CLS program. An articulation agreement with St. Paul College begins in 2011. It will allow their certified MLT and CLT students the opportunity to continue their education towards a four-year CLS degree.
The enhanced opportunities through the program are beneficial statewide and can become a model program for the nation, too. “There can be some disparity of having enough certified laboratory personnel available to deliver quality care throughout the state,” said Loewen. “Having more accredited clinical laboratory scientists in the workplace regionally especially will benefit small hospitals in rural Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa. Without a clinical laboratory scientist on staff, hospitals and clinics across the nation are forced to close. Instead, having increased the number of clinical laboratory scientists improves healthcare delivery everywhere.”
This program is a winning example of how HealthForce Minnesota, industry and educational partners are working together to assist industry employees and advanced healthcare education. Learn more about the CLS program by contacting:
Judith Loewen — CLS program director at Winona State University
JLoewen@winona.edu, 507-457-5270
Jane Foote — Director of HealthForce Minnesota
JFoote@winona.edu, 507- 285-7339, 612-673-5137
Connie Grauds — Allied Health Programs Consultant
Contance.Grauds@minneapolis.edu, 612-659-6461
Mary Jo Huebner — Allina Hospitals and Clinics Workforce Planning & Sourcing Specialist
maryjo.huebner@allina.com, 612-262-4650
Eric Ruppert — Allina Hospitals and Clinics Workforce Planning & Sourcing Specialist
eric.ruppert@allina.com, 612-262-4653
Note: WSU uses Quality Matters Program guidelines and deliverables from the University of Maryland to meet quality standards for programs offering classes on-line.
Sonya McNamara joins HealthForce Minnesota
Sonya McNamara has joined HealthForce Minnesota as the Health Science Career and Technical Education Coordinator. Previously she worked with Healthcare Education Industry Partnership (HEIP) for nine years as the K-12 Initiatives Project Manager.
McNamara has extensive experience in the healthcare field. “Prior to joining HEIP, I worked as a fire fighter and EMT,” she said. “The experiences I gained from being a fire fighter and EMT for six years enabled me to deal with change and a lot of things at the same time without becoming flustered.”
McNamara didn’t anticipate becoming a nurse when she received her undergraduate education at the Minnesota State University, Mankato, but because she enjoyed Community Health at MNSCU she decided to enter the field.
McNamara is not a stranger to HealthForce Minnesota. McNamara worked with the K-12 health science partnership. Her new responsibilities include developing middle school, high school and adult Scrubs Camp programs, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Perkins programs of study activities, and Project Lead the Way staffing support.
“I want the idea of Scrubs Camp to grow,” said McNamara. “It’s important for students to know what classes to enroll in to be successful in college. Middle school kids need to be taught how fun and interesting it is to be in the healthcare profession.”
McNamara will continue to work with HealthForce Minnesota partners as she has in the past by collaboratively determining what activities, themes, and programs will be implemented at the various Scrubs Camps. “I am excited to meet partners, discuss Scrubs Camp, develop a committee for the Perkins Programs of Study, and work with the workforce data to determine what each region needs,” said McNamara.
Welcome Sonya to the team! For questions or comments contact her at SMcnamara@winona.edu
Introducing Connie Grauds
Advancing Allied Health Programs
Connie Grauds
- Allied Health Programs Consultant for HealthForce Minnesota
- Director of Allied Health at Minneapolis College and Technical College
- President, Association of Natural Medicine Pharmacists
- Register Pharmacist
“Partnering in all areas and on all levels helps all of us get the highest good done,” said Connie Grauds, Allied Health Programs consultant for HealthForce Minnesota. In this role, Grauds will act as the primary contact for Allina employees interested in pursuing a four-year degree in clinical laboratory sciences through a new on-line degree program at Winona State University. (See Teamwork makes Accreditation and Clinical Laboratory Sciences Program a Reality story.)
A registered pharmacist and director of Allied Health at Minneapolis Community and Technical College, “I learned about all other health professions and became interested in helping students further their education and careers,” Grauds said.
She is actively involved in laddering and completion programs. Grauds also continues to serve on the HealthForce Minnesota Design Team, helping to vision innovation and fulfill the healthcare needs in Minnesota.
“Being involved in healthcare is exciting and dynamic,” added Grauds. “I want to encourage young people to look at healthcare as a career option. We need smart people with good caring hearts.”
If you have questions about the clinical laboratory sciences program, reach Grauds at Constance.Grauds@minneapolis.edu
Partner Stories
We know there are so many interesting activities our partners are doing in your organizations. Consider sharing them through this newsletter. For story consideration, please contact Lynn James, Interim Communications Coordinator for HealthForce Minnesota at write2workcomm@comcast.net or 952-832-9079.
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