Grant: Team Grant: Strength. the Health Workforce:Equitable, Diverse & Inclusive Health

The delivery of healthcare in Canada has been severely affected by the inconsistent supply of healthcare workers. This is especially evident in the community and home care sectors, which have a significant need for nurses and healthcare aides. Factors such as precarious working conditions, inadequate retention strategies and non-existent clinical support have led to chronic shortages. As the Canadian population becomes more diverse, the requirement for a diverse health workforce increases. Internationally educated nurses are underrepresented and underemployed. This project addresses this issue. A team of researchers, nurses and one of the largest community health organizations (over 7000 nurses nationwide) are collaborating to create an evidence-based workforce solution that supports rapid uptake and integration of IENs into commensurate employment. A retention model will be developed that focuses on hiring IENs and addressing the broad spectrum of their needs, including career planning, personal improvement, matched hiring and extended and targeted orientation. Innovative models such as these will move healthcare systems closer to solving what is currently an intractable and serious workforce problem.