MINUTES

 

                                                WVRHEP RECRUITMENT & RETENTION

COMMITTEE MEETING

 

September 20, 2004, Days Inn, Flatwoods

 

Attending: Penny Asbury, David Brown, Patti Crawford, Deborah Curry, Marilyn Fox, Tom Hefner, Lew Holloway,  Jill Hutchinson, Imogene Foster (for Jane Martin), Sandra Pope, Anna Reno, Melissa Wheeler, Bob Whiter, Staff: Alicia Tyler. Absent: Jay Bonfili, Norm Ferrari, Mike Holt, Sharon Lansdale, Jill McDaniel, Shirley Neel, Jo Ann Raines, Jessica Sharp, Dr. Bob Walker. Guests: Christine Hansbarger, Devney Friel, Ann Reynolds, Shannon Bell, Judy Kohler, Ralph Utzman, Sandra Marra, Marilyn Fox, Sheryll Tennant, Kim Robinson, Elizabeth “Betsy” Degges, Abira Roy.

 

Tom Hefner, serving as chair, opened the meeting with introductions. Dr. David Brown, a basic sciences professor, was welcomed as the new representative of WVSOM.

 

The minutes of the May 19th meeting, with one correction, were approved on motion (Whitler/Hutchinson).

 

Alicia made announcements:

-          October 15th is the deadline for Health Sciences Scholarship applications.

-          The retention report, which Bob Whitler requested for the September meeting, will be presented in November. Linda Atkins has retired as director of the Division of Recruitment, and Melissa Wheeler, the Interim Director, and Alicia will give the report.

-          Appointments to the board of the WV Center for Nursing have not yet been made by the Governor’s Office. Christine Hansbarger, the program coordinator of the new WV Nursing Leadership Institute, will report on the Institute.

-          HEPC provided $10,000 rural residency grants to AHECs in Southeast, Southwest, and the Eastern Panhandle. The AHEC directors will report their activities.

 

WV Nursing Leadership Institute

 

Christine Hansbarger reported on the Institute, which was spearheaded by Dr. Cynthia Persily of the WVU/Charleston Division, the program director:

-          Website is www.wvnli.org , which has a program description and application forms.

-          The project is a collaboration with the CAMC Research Institute.

-          What is it about? The nursing shortage. Most nurses in WV are prepared at the ADN level and don’t have management and research courses. The project will help nurses become leaders and take on recruitment and retention at their institutions.

-          The institute is an 18 month program that starts in January ’05. A total of 30 students will be admitted, and they can continue to work because of web-based learning tools. There are four 2½ day sessions in Charleston. It is based on the Robert W. Johnson Foundation Executive Leadership Program.

-          All nurses in all health care settings are eligible. They need the support of their home institution. They will be expected to develop a recruitment & retention tool with a $500 grant, plus in-kind or cash match from the sponsoring institution.

-          Applications are due October 15th, but the deadline may be extended.

-          The project is funded by the Benedum Foundation, RWJ Foundation, Sisters of St. Joseph (for nurses from Parkersburg), Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation, and CAMC Foundation. 

 

Patti Crawford asked for clarification on the matching requirements – e.g., could mentoring time be counted? Christine said that the requirements are flexible.  Dave Brown said that WV is projected to have a shortage of 2,500 nurses by 2008.  Where will the nurses come from?  Nursing schools have expanded their enrollment. New River Community College in Lewisburg is collaborating with Dabney Lancaster at Clifton Forge so that 12 to 15 WV students can pay in-state tuition in their nursing program. Melissa Wheeler said that the Division of Recruitment is beginning to do nurse recruitment.  The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation has nursing scholarships which are available statewide (www.tgkvf.org).

 

 

 

Placement Trends – WVU Residents

 

Elaine Mason said that her office provides the following services to WVU residents:

-          career planning assessment tools

-          career guidance

-          information on financial incentives

-          information on current positions

-          connections to recruiting sites

-          answers to job search questions

-          confidentiality.

 

These services are provided through meetings and presentations, e-mail (new series on job search tips), website (www.hsc.wvu.edu/placement), career day seminar (November 19, 2004), and an annual job fair.

 

Elaine provided a one-page report highlighting placement outcomes of WVU residents she assisted in 2004. Of the 83 residents, 46 (55%) were placed in WV; 34 (41%) are going out of state; and 3 (4%) provided no information.  In her database, Elaine has 59 opportunities for family practitioners (43 in medically underserved areas) and 164 opportunities for primary care physicians (98 in medically underserved areas).  The placement outcomes are broken down into specialty and location of residency.  Elaine circulated a notebook of opportunities she provides to residents and residency program coordinators.

 

Updates from Committee Members

 

Jill Hutchinson said that dental recruitment is becoming a priority in WV. The President’s budget asked for more funding for health centers for physician and dental recruitment. The amount was increased in the labor committee. Jill pointed out that 54% of West Virginians over 50 have dentures.

 

Elaine distributed a flyer for the WV Job Fair for physicians to be held in Morgantown on November 19, 2004.

 

Debbie Curry said that the Southwestern AHEC is starting its 5th IDT this month.  Four residents from last year accepted jobs in WV. Some accepted Rural Leadership Fellowships. The AHEC is working on pipeline projects, starting with the Wayne Co. high school math and science club. The AHEC team is focusing on students and health careers. The AHEC is planning mini camps for high school students in five counties. They are targeting first-generation college students.

 

Lew Holloway said that the Northern WV RHEC has completed its 2nd IDT in the Wheeling area. The team included 15 students and a resident from Wheeling.  Lew is working with three residency directors and wants to provide six IDTs this year.  It will be a joint collaboration with HSTA.  He also is working with RHEP on a longitudinal IDT focused on obesity. One issue is the choices students have in school. The State Board of Education will be voting on a vending machine bill in October.

 

Patti Crawford reported that an IDT will be starting within a week at the VA hospital in Beckley. A graduate of WVSOM will lead a team project on diabetes. A HSTA summer institute was sponsored by Bluefield and Concord that targeted minority students for health careers. Dave Brown said that in order to recruit more West Virginia students into the health professions, we need to encourage them to take biological sciences in high school.

 

Sandra Pope reported that the first statewide quarterly AHEC meeting was held in August. RHEP site coordinators were invited. The site visit from the AHEC program officer went well. The focus was the joint bioterrorism/AHEC project.  The AHECS are starting to do strategic planning, e.g., the Eastern AHEC is focused on clinical training.

 

The meeting was adjourned.