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Health care is the second largest non-government employer in Massachusetts, with nurses comprising 18 percent of the workforce. Seeking to address the issue of a general nursing shortage, the Commonwealth Corporation is working to implement the Nursing Career Ladder Initiative (NCLI), a program that aims to develop a permanent, sustainable, state-wide infrastructure and test strategies for increasing the ability to recruit, train and retain nurses in Massachusetts. NCLI is funded at $2.5 million over two years by a U.S. Department of Labor grant. The Private Industry Council (PCI) is overseeing this initiative.
BWH applied for and was selected as one of the five pilot sites for this initiative, along with MGH, Lahey Clinic Medical Center, the Cambridge Alliance and the Sherrill House.
The Commonwealth Corporation will test the recruitment strategy of Employer Outreach at the hospital, targeting current employees, who are interested in pursuing a career in nursing. BWHers will have access to an NCLI-appointed career coach 20 hours per month, who will provide coaching services to help guide employees through the process of becoming a nurse.
“This is a tremendous opportunity for BWH to test strategies for the recruitment and retention of nurses,” said Beverley Sobers, manager, Workforce Development, Partners HealthCare. “The coach will also work with us here in Human Resources and with Nursing Services to identify ways in which the hospital can sustain these coaching services for employees after the term of the grant, which is our ultimate goal.”
The NCLI committee, comprised of Sobers, Nancy Hickey, RN, director of Personnel Resource Applications; Peggy McCarthy-Mogan, RN, program manager for Nursing Professional Development; Anne Bane, RN, program coordinator for Nursing Professional Development; Tom Sullivan, RN, central educator and class instructor for Partners in Care PCA Training Program; and Rebecca Lashman, program manager, PIC, is taking the first steps in rolling out this initiative hospital-wide. Look for additional information to come in future issues of BWH Bulletin.