MHA, School of Nursing form collaboratory to address workforce needs

The Minnesota Hospital Association (MHA) and the University of Minnesota School of Nursing announced the formation of a collaboratory to facilitate working together to improve nursing practice, education and patient outcomes. The collaboratory will serve as a nursing think tank and incubator for creativity and innovation that will engage nursing faculty, staff and students in the development of strategies to enhance nursing education, research and practice.

Specifically, the School of Nursing and MHA will strategize how to address current and future nursing workforce needs for the hospitals and health systems and support a smooth transition of graduates into practice through collaboration between the school and MHA members and statewide committees, including the MHA Chief Nursing Officers Group.

“The School of Nursing is committed to a transformative collaboration with MHA and their Chief Nursing Officers Group to address urgent workforce needs, nursing equity and excellence,” says Dean Connie White Delaney, PhD, RN, FAAN, FACMI, FNAP. “The issues facing nursing and nursing education require cooperation and coordinated efforts.”

Additional areas of focus will be advancing nursing knowledge to improve and support the health of individuals and their families through research and evidence-based practice, as well as fostering innovative undergraduate, graduate and post graduate education experiences at hospitals and health systems.

“The worsening workforce crisis in health care requires an urgent and all-hands-on-deck approach in order to preserve access and support innovation in care,” says Rahul Koranne, MD, MBA, FACP, president and CEO, Minnesota Hospital Association. “MHA is excited to dial up our long-standing partnership with the University of Minnesota School of Nursing through this collaboratory to strengthen the pipeline of health care professionals needed to care for our patients and communities for generations to come.”