Health Professions Network Holds Spring Meeting

May 2, 2007

The Health Professions Network (HPN), represents approximately 200 health care provider organizations, educators, regulators, and government agencies held its 2007 spring meeting in Minneapolis, MN from April 26-29, 2007. HPN concerned with advancing and exploring current issues relevant to allied health professions, Bill Dubbs, AARC Director of Education and Management Services represented the AARC.

The various topics presented and discussed at this meeting focused on healthcare’s workforce.  The keynote presentation delivered by Paul Wing, Deputy Director of the Center for Workforce Studies in Albany focused on building professionalism with the various health care disciplines. Other presentations that followed focused on utilizing the community of resources including health providers, educational systems and employers to address the shortage of healthcare workers. These included excellent examples included initiatives of Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) throughout the nation, and successful statewide efforts in Minnesota being successfully undertaken by its Healthcare Education-Industry  Partnership (HEIP).  Activities of Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) whose mission is to promote career opportunities in health care to students were reviewed. Finally the issue of professions requiring increasing higher academic degrees at entry level and its implications for on healthcare workforce development were discussed by experts from the pharmacy profession, and deans from two and four-year institutions.