Signing off of my beat....for now

As I post my last blog for our 8350 class, I will never read newspapers the same again. Covering the "workforce" beat and watching my classmates cover their beat has sensitized me to the enormous amount of health-related material in the media today and the need for excellent coverage.

One thing is really clear to me after this semester--there is a worldwide shortage of healthcare professionals. Little Johnny and his sister Suzie need to be urged to consider a career in healthcare and get as much education as they possibly can. That will require a strong public awareness campaign, new scholarships and incentives, and more medical and nursing schools.

Those of us in the media can help this effort too--by writing about the need, and bringing the issue front and center before our readers. That means more journalists who know how to write about it--accurately--and editors who see the need for strong placement of these articles.

All of us who had the privilege to sit under Professor Thomas and Coach Kim Davis and our numerous guest speakers this Fall owe them a debt of gratitude for their investment in our lives and careers.

Intra-Sector Cooperation Needed

Reuters reported that the Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence Executive
Director Marilyn Deluca said, "Foundations, business and academia must
work together to fund programs that get to precisely these issues, because
urses -- the unsung heroes of our health care system -- need more
champions."  Marilyn, commenting on the nursing shortage is one of many
looking for innovative ways to get more nurses into the workforce.

This partnership of sorts between the academic, business, and philanthropic
community is the kind of creative solutions I think we need in our country today.
The Academic brings the best-practices and training. Business brings the
incentive, and the philanthropic community can provide avenues for people
to use their heart. Compassion is a driving force in the health care business.

In my last post, I talked about the need for more medical schools for doctors,
but the looming shortage of nurses is even worse. 

Fortunately, we have an MCG (Medical College of Georgia) Nurses
School extension here in Athens.

In my very first post, I talked about the bird flu and the impact it would
have on our nurse work force.  We need to take action now to get this
aspect of our work force in line with the needs of our country. 

Med School Wanted...apply within!

The last couple of weeks have been exciting for me. My op-ed piece from the New Orleans trip was published on the front page of the Athens Banner Opinion Section as the "big idea." Then, I had an opportunity to talk more about it on a talk radio show in town.

If you did not get an chance to read it, go to the article here.

Getting the med school extension campus here would be so great for our community. Until then, we need to continue to recruit physicians and nurses to work in our three safety net clinics. Additionally, December is the best month of the year for non-profits to raise money. As their budgets grow, so will their staff and their ability to see more patients.

Dr. DeSalvo at Covenant House in New Orleans was blessed to have so many doctors doing their residencies there. Hopefully, with a powerful Ga. House member running against Congressman Paul Broun here in town, we will get the attention of the legislature and the money needed to jumpstart the program.