As part of a new statewide initiative called the Virginia Partnership for Health Science Careers, a regional partnership in Southern Virginia will bring together schools, hospitals, healthcare providers, and workforce development professionals from the public and private sector to expand the area’s healthcare workforce, create meaningful career opportunities, and meet the needs of communities throughout Southern Virginia. The Southern Virginia Partnership for Health Science Careers will work to implement Collaborating to Address Regional Workforce Challenges: A Roadmap, an “off-the-shelf” guide to establish and operate regional, employer-engaged workforce development collaboratives in Virginia with a focus on healthcare careers.
The regional healthcare workforce partnership will be coordinated by Dr. Julie Brown, Vice President of Advanced Learning at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR), and involve partners including Sovah Health, Sentara Halifax, PATHS, VCU Health Community Memorial Hospital, GO Virginia Region 3, Southside Virginia Community College, Danville Community College, Patrick & Henry Community College, and Virginia Career Works South Central and West Piedmont regions, along with the region’s Community Service Boards. The partnership will serve communities including the cities of Danville and Martinsville; and the counties of Amelia, Brunswick, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Halifax, Henry, Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Nottoway, Patrick, Pittsylvania, and Prince Edward.
o support the partnership’s success, Claude Moore Opportunities has helped convene the needed regional stakeholders, provided financial support for the partnership and healthcare workforce development programs throughout the region, and its partners at the George Mason University Center for Health Workforce have provided data on current and expected healthcare workforce shortages in the region.
“At Claude Moore, we believe that coordinated, regional partnerships are the most promising approach for creating meaningful career opportunities while meeting the healthcare needs of our citizens and strengthening regional economies throughout Virginia,” said Dr. Bill Hazel, CEO of Claude Moore Opportunities. “We are proud to be part of a true collaborative effort that builds on the work that local officials have been doing for years and look forward to the positive impact that this partnership will have on families and communities throughout the region.”
“IALR is proud to serve as a convener in GO Virginia Region 3, activating The Roadmap developed by Claude Moore and the Secretary of Labor and replicating the successful Blue Ridge Partnership model,” said partnership coordinator Dr. Julie Brown (IALR’s Vice President of Advanced Learning). “Developing collaborative partnerships, driven through private sector engagement and focused on data-driven solutions, will enable us to collectively address our region’s healthcare talent needs.”
In addition to the regional partnership for Southern Virginia, partnerships have now been established in each region of the state as part of the Virginia Partnership for Health Science Careers, a new statewide effort led by Claude Moore Opportunities to better coordinate healthcare workforce development in communities around the Commonwealth. The network’s workforce development efforts will focus on the careers that create strong, accessible medical, dental, and behavioral/mental health systems such as technicians, assistants, and aides, with an emphasis on the positions that community leaders and healthcare providers identify as most critical for their region.
The Southern Virginia Partnership for Health Science Careers has already begun its work and held several regional meetings, while the overarching Virginia Partnership for Health Science Careers has held two statewide summits to share strategies and best practices.
The Healthcare Workforce Shortage in Southern Virginia
According to a comprehensive 2023 study for the Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority, 102 of Virginia’s 133 localities are federally designated “Health Professional Shortage Areas” and 93 localities are “Mental Healthcare Professional Shortage Areas,” meaning about 30% of Virginians live in a community without a sufficient number of primary and behavioral healthcare providers.
Based on an analysis of active job ads performed by the], it is estimated that, in order to meet the community’s healthcare demands in Southern Virginia, the region needs:
- 905 registered nurses
- 382 social and human service assistants
- 252 licensed practical nurses and licensed vocational nurses
- 227 physical therapists
- 156 nursing assistants
- 121 personal care aides
- 109 mental health and substance abuse social workers
*(As of 2024Q3)
Southern Virginia also needs 131 postsecondary health specialties teachers to train and educate the next generation of healthcare and life sciences workers.
The GMU Center for Health Workforce analysis found that the Commonwealth of Virginia as a whole needs:
- 17,537 registered nurses
- 10,670 medical and human services managers
- 9,171 social and human services assistants
- 3,751 physical therapists
- 3,090 licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses
- 2,760 nursing assistants
- 2,412 mental health and substance abuse social workers
- 2,282 personal care aides
*(As of 2024Q4)
The Commonwealth also needs 1,711 postsecondary health specialties teachers to train and educate the next generation of healthcare and life sciences workers.