SENATE BILL REPORT

SB 5831

As of February 25, 2003

Title: An act relating to the creation of health skills panels in local areas to address health care personnel shortages.

Brief Description: Creating health skills panels in local areas to address health care personnel shortages.

Sponsors: Senators Franklin, Winsley, Rasmussen, Shin, Keiser, Kastama, Prentice, Regala, Doumit, McAuliffe, B. Sheldon, Kline, Brandland, Brown, Eide, Spanel, Poulsen, Kohl-Welles, Thibaudeau, Jacobsen, Fraser and Fairley.

Brief History:

Committee Activity: Health & Long-Term Care: 2/25/03.

SENATE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH & LONG-TERM CARE

Staff: Tanya Karwaki (786-7447)

Background: There is concern that Washington has a health care personnel shortage impacting the quality and accessibility of health care. Health skills panels provide a means for collaboration between the health industry and educators to address the health care personnel shortages in local areas.

Since 2000, the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board has issued SKILLS (Securing Key Industry Leaders for Learning Skills) grants to workforce development councils to support skill panels. Each skills panel addresses skills gaps for a particular industry such as health or technology. Washington has 12 workforce development councils, eight of which have health skills panels.

Summary of Bill: The Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board must work with local workforce development councils to address health care personnel shortages. The board must support expanding the activities of existing health skills panels and work with areas lacking health skills panels to establish such entities.

Local health skills panels must facilitate implementation of specific strategies, if appropriate to the needs of their area. These strategies include coordinating clinical training to expand capacity for clinical training, leveraging resources to increase educational capacity, and developing customized training opportunities for entry-level health care workers to enable them to move up career ladders and fill high demand positions.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Requested on February 21, 2003.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.