UW Health has announced the creation of WorkForward, a new non-profit organization that is designed to bolster the national health care workforce.
“Building on the health system’s nationally recognized leadership in developing innovative career pathways in health care, WorkForward is the first employer-based intermediary in health care, aligning employers, educators, governing bodies and other organizations around shared workforce development goals and outcomes,” UW Health said in a news release.
Workforce shortages and high turnover have been persistent challenges for health care systems as they attempt to meet the growing national demand for care. WorkForward will guide and support efforts to build and scale innovative approaches to health care workforce development, drawing upon the sustained success achieved in the Madison area.
“People want to work in health care, or grow in their health care careers, and health systems want to hire and support talented people; they just need the right coordination and infrastructure,” said Bridgett Willey, executive director and chief operating officer of WorkForward, in a press release. “That’s what WorkForward is designed to provide.”
This project brings an important new voice to a health care industry facing significant workforce shortages. The National Center for Health Workforce Analysis predicts shortages across the health care workforce by the year 2038, including 141,160 physicians, 108,960 registered nurses, 60,610 physical therapists, 30,400 pharmacists and 12,770 respiratory therapists
