Jobs, jobs, jobs; as the nation’s unemployment rate seems unable to move far from the 10 percent mark, many are asking where the jobs will be in the next decade. The answer—for a multitude of reasons—seems to be in health care. The shortages in many health professions make the imperative to focus on preparing workers for the health field even stronger.
Colleges and universities will be key players in meeting the needs in the health care professions and we should be fostering growth in health care education. For-profit schools have emerged as new and growing players in the education scene. But for a strong workforce ready to address the current and impending shortage, we need graduates with high-quality educations who choose to work in high-demand fields. That’s why it is important to understand the role that for-profit colleges play in training health care professionals and the quality of the services they provide.
For-profit colleges claim to be playing an important role in training the health care workers of tomorrow. But who are they training? Are students receiving a quality education from these schools?
Please join us for a discussion of these and other questions related to the role of for-profit colleges in training the health care workforce.
Welcome and introduction:
Neera Tanden, Chief Operating Officer, Center for American Progress
Presentation of new CAP report:
Julie Margetta Morgan, Policy Analyst, Center for American Progress
Keynote speaker:
Dr. Janet Heinrich, Associate Administrator, Bureau of Health Professions, Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Reaction panel:
Tim Bates, Center for Healthcare Professions, University of CA – San Francisco
Kevin Kinser, Professor, University of Albany
Julie Margetta Morgan, Policy Analyst, Center for American Progress
Jeff Strohl, Director of Research, Georgetown Center for Education and the Workforce
Moderated by:
Ellen-Marie Whelan, Associate Director of Health Policy and Senior Health Policy Analyst, Center for American Progress