Opening New Pathways to Address Health Worker Shortages
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The U.S. is on track to be short 1.1 million nurses by the end of the year – a reality linked to increased hospital readmission and mortality amongst patients. With COVID-related burnout amongst current nurses, diminished capacity to train future nurses, and 1 million nurses set to retire by 2030, the U.S. will continue to face critical nursing shortages unless we successfully tap new talent pools to meet demand.
A place to start is with the 263,000 immigrants and refugees who hold health-related degrees but who cannot take advantage of them in the U.S. workforce. Nearly half of these degrees are in nursing. These would-be health workers are among the two million college-educated immigrants and refugees who are unemployed or underemployed in the U.S. Sixty percent of these individuals are Internationally Trained Professionals (ITPs), that is, individuals with education, training, and experience earned in other countries.
For decades, the limited recognition of international credentials, barriers to occupational licensing, and uneven access to workforce development programs have driven ITPs’ unemployment and underemployment – at the cost of $40 billion in foregone wages and $10 billion in lost tax revenue each year. These systemic yet solvable barriers have limited families’ economic mobility for generations and kept workers with high-demand training and skills from connecting with employers who need them.
This fall President Biden signed the bipartisan Bridging the Gap for New Americans Act into law in an effort to address these disparities. The new law calls on the U.S. Department of Labor to study the factors driving ITPs’ unemployment and underemployment – and to issue recommendations for reform.
The law takes a welcomed step towards catalyzing long-overdue federal action on this issue. And at the local level, we can take immediate steps to address one of the core drivers of ITP underemployment, so long as all stakeholders – including employers, higher education, and nonprofits – are willing to help bring solutions to scale.
Language Upskilling is a Scalable Solution
English is a linchpin of immigrant workforce inclusion in the U.S., yet this country currently serves the needs of just 4% of its adult English learners.
Most English instruction in the U.S. is based on outdated models, rooted in teaching abstract grammar and linguistic theories rather than the relevant, real-life language needed for communication. Research has long indicated that adults learn best when content is relevant to their lives and livelihoods – and language is no exception. Personalized, contextualized, and career-aligned language instruction models are linked to efficient, effective gains in English proficiency. Digitized platforms show promise to offer adult learners access to effective language learning at the scale needed to address the scope of our nation’s workforce challenges.
EnGen’s language upskilling platform is built on these best practices, and two new pathways are designed to support learners in acquiring career-aligned language skills while exploring topics relevant to rejoining their careers in high-demand fields, including nursing:
English for Internationally Trained Professionals supports ITPs in navigating the U.S. job search process, including learning about cultural norms and legal requirements around hiring, fully understanding the job application process, positioning their international experience and transferable skills, networking, and developing new skills – including English proficiency.
English for the NCLEX-RN helps learners prepare to take the NCLEX-RN exam, a standardized test that measures nursing competency – and is a requirement for internationally trained nurses to license in the U.S. This course covers how to communicate effectively with patients and their families, assess medical issues, properly administer medications, and follow safety procedures. This program helps learners develop the necessary English skills essential to becoming an entry-level licensed vocational nurse.
Across the country, a growing network of nearly 300 organizations – including more than 50 community colleges, 10 health systems, and dozens of local governments have adopted EnGen’s digital platforms to provide access to effective language upskilling to their employers, learners, and clients. To date, we’ve supported more than 45,000 learners in improving English proficiency while acquiring skills to critical rejoining careers in high-demand, essential sectors.
With a new law setting the stage for federal-level action in supporting ITP workforce inclusion, we’re eager to scale language upskilling as a solution. We can no longer afford to have two million workers – especially those with education and training in high-demand fields like healthcare – sitting on the sidelines as our workforce is paralyzed by staffing shortages. The health of our nation hangs in the balance.
See how EnGen can address language barriers the scale needed to power our economic recovery. Schedule a demo with one of our workforce development experts.