Workforce

About Workforce

California’s shortage of health care workers is severe. Statewide, more than 22% of Californians live in an area without enough primary care providers. There, patients often face a health care system lacking enough nurses, physicians, pharmacists, and others.  California needs to add 500,000 new allied health care professionals such as medical assistants, imaging specialists, and more. Closing the gap will require partnership among employers, workers, policymakers, colleges, licensing entities, and others.

HQI Virtual Forum to Discuss Workplace Violence in Rural, Critical Access Hospitals

What’s happening: Individuals leading and supporting hospital efforts to eliminate workplace violence are invited to the next Hospital Quality Institute (HQI) virtual forum on Dec. 12 at noon (PT).  

What else to know: The forum will discuss workplace violence concerns and interventions specific to critical access and rural hospitals. Registration is open, and participation is free for all CHA and HQI member hospitals.    

2025 HR Conference

The 2025 HR Conference is coming to Long Beach in February! Hosted by the California Hospital Association in partnership with the Hospital Association of Southern California, this conference will cover topics human resource professionals in health care need to know about.

Exploring the Future of AI in Health Care: Insights from the HQI and Hospital Council Conference

What’s happening: At this year’s Hospital Quality Institute (HQI) and Hospital Council Conference, thought leaders and cutting-edge practitioners convened for conversations about artificial intelligence (AI) in health care and how it may evolve in the future.  

What else to know: About 350 people, including frontline patient safety professionals, chief nursing officers, and hospital leaders, attended the event at Lake Tahoe Oct. 20-21.  

HQI Virtual Forum Examines Hospital Workplace Violence Insights Gleaned from Statewide and Other Large-Scale Data

What’s happening: Individuals leading and supporting hospital efforts to eliminate workplace violence are invited to a virtual forum on the topic held by the Hospital Quality Institute (HQI) on Oct. 24 from noon to 1 p.m. (PT). Registration is open.  

What else to know: Featured speaker Rachel Odes, PhD, RN, who also is an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Nursing, will discuss what statewide data — from the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health and the California Division of Workers’ Compensation — reveal about workplace violence toward hospital workers.  

HQI Quality Quarterly Spotlights Patient Safety Strategies

What’s happening: The latest edition of Quality Quarterly explores the prevalence of behavioral health conditions among California hospital encounters, the dangers of menopause misdiagnosis, new patient safety measures outlined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and the need for effective reporting of workplace violence incidents by hospital staff.    

What else to know: More than half of California hospitals now use HQI’s Hospital Quality Improvement Platform (HQIP), which provides comparative analytics to help hospitals identify opportunities for improvement.  Learn about HQIP’s new features and updates in this latest edition. 

Hospital Volunteers from Across the State Convene in San Diego

What’s happening: The 2024 California Hospital Volunteer Leadership Conference was held Sept. 16-17 in San Diego. More than 150 people attended, including volunteers, volunteer leaders, paid volunteer leaders, community partners, and others.  

What else to know: Sessions focused on support and best practices for hospital volunteer programs, collecting metrics to tell the story of hospital volunteers, and the unique skills and benefits volunteers bring to health care teams.  

HQI to Hold Virtual Forum on Data-Driven Strategies to Address Hospital Workplace Violence

What’s happening: The Hospital Quality Institute (HQI) is hosting a virtual forum on hospital workplace violence on Sept. 26 at noon (PT). Individuals leading and supporting hospital efforts to eliminate workplace violence are invited. Registration is open.  

What else to know: The forum will share practical, data-driven approaches hospitals can use to analyze, manage, and prevent workplace violence. The featured speaker will be William Huey, Jr., CPP, CHPA, workplace violence prevention program manager at UC Irvine Health, who is leading an empirically grounded workplace violence prevention program in his organization. 

California Rural Hospitals Invited to AHA Town Hall

What’s happening: The American Hospital Association (AHA) Region 9 will hold a virtual Rural Advocacy Town Hall on Oct. 9, 10-11 a.m. (PT) through Microsoft Teams. Region 9 includes California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington State, Alaska, Hawaii, and the Pacific territories.   

What else to know: The call will be led by AHA’s rural advocacy experts in Washington, D.C.: Travis Robey, vice president, political affairs, and Shannon Wu, PhD, director, payment policy. Susan Doherty, vice president for field engagement and rural health segment lead, will also join.  All CHA member hospitals with membership in the AHA are welcome to register