Work Force Newsletter

Health Care

Workforce Updates

November 2024

Health care education and life skills funding announced

The New York State Department of Health Office of Healthcare Workforce Innovation has announced $97 million in funding to support the Healthcare Education and Life-Skills Program. The goal of this funding is to decrease healthcare workforce shortages by offering wrap-around services and support to students or trainees pursuing careers in healthcare.

Nonprofits eligible to apply for funding may include, but are not limited to, Area Health Education Centers (AHECs), community based organizations, community health associations, educational institutions, general hospitals, healthcare facilities, healthcare worker unions, joint labor-management training funds and committees, long term care facilities, regional health planning organizations, regional health networks, rural health networks, trade associations and workforce investment organizations.

Questions are due Nov. 12, and applications are due Dec. 20. The anticipated award date is Aug. 1, 2025. Find the proposal requirements and full RFP here.

Grant aims to promote behavioral health workforce

A grant to educate and train behavioral health workers is now available. The Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program for Professionals aims to increase the supply of behavioral health professionals and improve the distribution of a quality behavior health workforce.

The program focuses on understanding the needs of children, adolescents, and young adults at risk for mental health, trauma, and behavioral health disorders. This grant prepares the workforce by emphasizing interprofessional team-based models of care, integrating behavioral health training in primary care settings and recruiting a diverse workforce interested in serving high need and high demand areas. The program also invests in increasing the number and training of clinical supervisors.

Eligible applicants include public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, hospitals and rural health clinics, state and local governments, domestic faith-based and community-based organizations and tribal governments and organizations. Applications are due Jan. 21, 2025.

Learn more here.

Grants available for graduate psychology training programs

The Graduate Psychology Education Program provides training to doctoral health service psychology students, interns and postdoctoral residents in integrated, interdisciplinary behavioral health. The program will prepare trainees to provide behavioral health services in community-based primary care settings. The program also supports faculty development in health service psychology.

HRSA will award up to 50 grantees over a period of three years through this funding opportunity. Eligible applicants who are public and private institutions of higher education, hospitals and rural health clinics, HRSA-funded health centers and Federally Qualified Health Centers, nonprofit organizations, state and local governments, tribal governments and organizations. Applications are due by Jan. 21, 2025. Learn more here.

Adult Mental Health First Aid training for peer workforce personnel and interested individuals – 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Nov. 11 online. Southern Tier Transformation Plan and AspireHope NY are offering the skills-based training course that teaches participants to identify, understand, and respond to mental health and substance use challenges. Each participant will have 2 hours of online training that must be completed before Nov. 10. To attend, call (607) 776-2164.

Organizational Culture: Strategies for Workforce Recruitment and Retention - Nov. 12. The New York State Public Health Association is offering a two-part webinar that combines data and research with real world application of strategies focusing on organizational culture. Presenters are Renae Rokicki and Shari Weiss. Webinars are free for NYSPHA members and $10 for non-members. Register here. Email purumi@nyspha.org or info@nyspha.org for details.

Board Governance: Expectations & Creativity – from 8:30 – 10:30 a.m. Nov. 12 at St. John Fisher University. The Center for Nonprofit Leadership will take place for an interactive presentation on the science and art of board governance. Presenter Jean Carroll will cover basics of governance best practices including identifying collective and individual expectations, jobs of committees, board policies, monitoring board and CEO performance, and clarity on the board/CEO functions. Bring a typical board agenda or board workplan to review and consider enhancements to move beyond the basics and create a dynamic and engaged board. The cost is $50/participant and includes a light continental breakfast. Register here.

Native American Cultural Competency Training in Rochester - 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 13 at Partners in Restorative Initiatives, 111 Hillside Avenue, Rochester. Pete Hill (Cayuga) will be putting on a Native American Cultural Competency training as part of the Indigenous Health and Well-being Promotion Program in the Native American Community Services in Buffalo. Pete is a member of Common Ground Health’s Indigenous Health Coalition. Register by emailing him at phill@nacswny.org.

Introduction to Human-Centered Design for Nonprofit Leadership – from 9 a.m. to noon Nov. 19 at St. John Fisher University. This 3-hour interactive workshop introduces nonprofit leaders to the core concepts of Human-Centered Design. Participants will practice empathy mapping to identify user needs, learn simple prototyping techniques for testing new ideas quickly, and explore case examples of human-centered design success in nonprofit leadership. Presenters are Nikisha S. Johnson and Maria O’Brien of TogetherNow. The cost is $50/participant and includes a light continental breakfast. Register here.

Artificial Intelligence in Rochester Healthcare: Current Reality and Future Promise - from noon to 1:30 p.m. Nov. 21. The Greater Rochester Quality Council is offering this FREE health care webinar. Registration is required; register here. For ASL interpretation, please email Robert_Panzer@urmc.rochester.edu.

Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care Project ECHO®. Professional care providers in nursing homes who want to increase their ability to diagnose and care for patients with Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia can sign up for this training, which takes place during six consecutive Tuesdays beginning at 3 p.m. Jan. 21, 2025. To register, contact Nicole Atchison at niatchison@alz.org.

Please share your health care workforce updates

If you have workforce updates to share, or any feedback or ideas for this newsletter, please contact Melissa Wendland at melissa.wendland@commongroundhealth.org.

Please share this newsletter with others in your organization who might benefit and encourage them to sign up to receive it. 
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