| HEALTH PROFESSIONS E-LETTER, June
2007
Dear Reader,
Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) play a key role in addressing
health workforce shortages, particularly in rural areas. Their
work too often goes unrecognized and unheralded, so that's why
it's nice to see "Sowing seeds for rural medicine"
in the May 21 Indianapolis Star:
http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007705210365
Approximately 120 medical schools and 600 nursing and allied
health schools work collaboratively with AHECs and Health Education
Training Centers (HETCs) to improve health for underserved and
under-represented populations. To help support this crucial
work, the AMA recently joined the National AHEC Organization
(NAO) as a patron member.
Learn more about the NAO:
http://www.nationalahec.org
Finally, here's a great example of AHECS in Louisiana working
together to promote the health professions:
http://www.lahealthcareers.com
Have you hugged your AHEC today?
Best Regards,
Fred Donini-Lenhoff, editor
1. New AMA Health Professions Education Data
Book now available
2. AMA survey off to a fast start
3. Review: Health professions directory a "must-have"
4. Here comes the judge -- and it could be you
5. Featured program: Alabama State U, occupational
therapy program
6. National salary data from BLS available online
7. The shape of things to come: Obesity in America
up 50% in 5 years
8. Electronic medical records doomed to fail without
trained workforce
9. Physician assistants help in teaching hospitals
10. CAAHEP offers emergency preparedness resources
11. Submit grant applications for Jobs to Careers
initiative
12. Sign up for symposium on North Carolina economy
and allied health
1. New AMA Health Professions
Education Data Book now available
This newly updated publication features 30 tables of data
for academic
year 2005-2006, including:
- Number of Programs and Enrollments, Attrition, and Graduates
by Occupation
- Enrollments, Graduates, and Number of Programs by State/Province
and Occupation
- Enrollments, Attrition, and Graduates by Race/Ethnic
Origin and Gender
- Health Professions Salary Ranges
The data book provides a wide range of allied health education
data useful to workforce analysts, policy makers, professional
associations, career counselors, and students.
To order the publication in Adobe Acrobat pdf format, see:
http://www.ama-assn.org/go/hpdatabook
The price is $20 for AMA members or directors of allied health
professions programs and $40 for nonmembers.
2. AMA survey off to a fast start
Our thanks to the 500 programs that have completed the 2007
Survey of Health Professions Education Programs, which went
online in late May.
Survey data will appear in the 2008-2009 editions of the
Health Professions Career and Education Directory and Health
Professions Education Data Book.
Program directors: Have you completed the survey? If not,
contact Dorothy Grant-Bryant at dorothy.grant-bryant@ama-assn.org
(312) 464-4936 for login information.
NOTE: Respondents to this year's survey will be entered in
monthly drawings to win a complimentary copy of The Art of
JAMA (list price $70), with full-color reproductions of a
wide range of artwork from the world's finest museums: http://tinyurl.com/2n4u9x
3. Review: Health professions directory
a "must-have"
The AMA's Health Professions Career and Education Directory
earned a perfect 5-star ranking (received by only 8% of books
reviewed) in a recent evaluation by Doody's Book Review Service.
The reviewer wrote, "This is a 'must-have' for all high
school, college, and public libraries and a highly recommended
resource for healthcare professionals."
In addition, the Directory "continues to be an indispensable
resource for prospective healthcare students and healthcare
professionals."
Order your copy now by calling 800 621-8335, or see:
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/3991.html#5
To receive a copy of the order form, send an e-mail to meded@ama-assn.org.
For fastest service, be sure to specify the phrase "HPCED"
in the e-mail's subject line.
4. Here comes the judge -- and it could
be you
Adult professionals with a variety of skills and experiences
are needed to serve as event judges at the annual conference
of HOSA (Health Occupations Students of America), June 20-23,
at the Marriot World Center in Orlando, Florida.
Judges are needed for several events, including Medical Spelling,
Researched Persuasive Speaking, Health Education, Extemporaneous
Writing, Biomedical Debate, and Physical Therapy.
http://www.hosa.org/natorg/partnerships/CompetitiveEventJudges.html
5. Featured program: Alabama State
U, occupational therapy program
Each issue we profile a randomly selected educational program,
using text provided by program personnel who filled out the
AMA's annual survey.
This month we feature the occupational therapy program at
Alabama State University (ASU).
As one of the 107 historically black colleges and universities
(HBCUs) throughout the United States, ASU offers a unique
experience, in which cultural sensitivity and competence are
common threads embedded within the occupational therapy curriculum.
The program's philosophy reflects the complexity and diversity
of its students and their varying needs during the learning
process, and prepares students to work with diverse populations
in varied settings.
http://www.alasu.edu/Health_Sciences/default.aspx?id=15
6. National salary data from BLS available
online
An online chart from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
shows wages for various occupations, including many health
professionals:
http://stats.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.t01.htm
Also, check out the AMA's online salary table for allied
health professionals:
http://www.ama-assn.org/go/hpsalary
7. The shape of things to come: Obesity
in America up 50% in 5 years
The proportion of Americans who are severely obese -- about
100 pounds or more overweight -- increased by 50 percent from
2000 to 2005, twice as fast as the growth seen in moderate
obesity, according to a recent RAND Corporation study.
Because this is the fastest growing group of obese Americans,
current projections underestimate the consequences of the
obesity epidemic, since illness and service use are much higher
among severely obese individuals.
http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/2007/RAND_RB9043-1.pdf
(PDF, 150KB, requires Adobe Reader)
8. Electronic medical records doomed
to fail without trained workforce
"Massachusetts is among the leaders nationally in the
use of electronic patient records and computerized drug prescribing.
But its workforce is not keeping pace: The state lacks enough
people who know how computers work and who understand how
doctors diagnose and treat diseases" (Boston Globe, May
14).
Shortages of qualified personnel in healthcare information
technology "are acute at almost every level," one
e-health expert told the Globe.
To meet the need for workers, Northeastern University is
launching a graduate degree program this fall in managing
clinical healthcare data using computers. Similarly, Framingham
State College is considering opening a certificate program
in medical records information in fall 2008.
Read more:
http://tinyurl.com/32d4u8
9. Physician Assistants help in teaching
hospitals
As we approach the 4-year anniversary of duty hour limits
for resident physicians, physician assistants and other mid-level
practitioners are continuing to help keep teaching hospitals
running smoothly.
"Limits on resident duty hours promote collaboration
between medical staff and physician extenders"
Medical Staff Briefing, May 24, 2007
http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/view_content.cfm?content_id=89842
10. CAAHEP offers emergency
preparedness resources
The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education
Programs (CAAHEP) has received a federal contract to help
CAAHEP's Committees on Accreditation establish educational
standards and/or guidelines for emergency preparedness and
responsiveness; see: http://www.caahep.org/epp/
Attendees at CAAHEP's April meeting viewed a video presentation
on emergency preparedness by Ralph Shealy, MD, of the South
Carolina Area Health Education Consortium. Dr. Shealy's presentation
lays out powerfully the argument that health care workers
have an obligation to use their education and skills in time
of disaster or national emergency.
For a free copy of the live presentation on DVD, contact
the CAAHEP office at mail@caahep.org.
The PowerPoint portion of the presentation is available at:
http://www.caahep.org/epp/documents/Dr.%20Shealy%20Emergency.ppt
11. Submit grant applications
for Jobs to Careers initiative
Jobs to Careers: Promoting Work-Based Learning for Quality
Care is an initiative that seeks to support partnerships to
advance and reward the skill and career development of incumbent
health care workers.
A national initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation,
in collaboration with the Hitachi Foundation, Jobs to Careers
supports partnerships of employers, educational institutions,
and others to help improve training and advancement of frontline
workers and test new models of education and training that
incorporate work-based learning.
The initiative is currently accepting grant applications
through June 19.
http://www.jobs2careers.org
12. Sign up for symposium
on North Carolina economy and allied health
As one of the nation's leaders in allied health research
and policy, North Carolina will host a one-day symposium,
Friday, June 15, in Chapel Hill, to relationship between economic
development and allied health workforce development efforts
in the state.
For more information or to register for this free event,
see:
http://www.aheconnect.com/registration/gahec/eventdetail.asp?EventID=20063
ABOUT US . . .
The Health Professions e-Letter is produced by the American
Medical Association (AMA).
This periodic newsletter covers educational trends and career-related
issues for 71 professions that participate in the delivery of
health care, including diagnostic and rehabilitative services,
therapeutic treatments, health or information services management,
counseling for psychosocial and cognitive needs, or related
services.
Newsletter readers and contributors include staff of health
professions accrediting agencies, educational programs and institutions,
professional organizations, certifying/licensing boards, and
media contacts.
Previous issues are available online at:
http://www.ama-assn.org/go/hpe-letter
GIVE US YOUR STORY IDEAS AND FEEDBACK
What's happening in the world of health professions? If you
have any leads or story ideas, please contact us. Also, let
us know what you think about this newsletter--and feel free
to forward it to your colleagues.
Direct suggestions, comments, compliments, gripes, to
Fred Donini-Lenhoff
American Medical Association
Medical Education Products
515 N State St, Chicago, IL 60610
312 464-4635
312 464-5830 fax
fred_lenhoff@ama-assn.org
http://www.ama-assn.org/go/hpe-letter
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