HPAE Professional Issues Conference (PIC) - 2013 - Health Professionals & Allied Employees

HPAE Professional Issues Conference (PIC) – 2013

 

HPAE held its Professional Issues Conference on October 2, 2013, at the Holiday Inn East Windsor, NJ.

HPAE President Ann Twomey opened the conference by discussing the key challenges facing HPAE. As we struggle with the negative effects of the current government shutdown, Ann pointed out that "politics do matter" and we have to be actively involved in working for policies that support collective bargaining rights and quality patient care for all.

Following Ann, the keynote speaker, David Knowlton, President and CEO of the New Jersey Healthcare Quality Institute, discussed some of the most important trends in the healthcare system.

According to David, we are in a period of unprecedented change in healthcare, based on the following transformations in the industry and patient care:

  • The consolidation of the hospital industry, which wil mean a smaller number of hospitals and a few, large healthcare systems
  • The expansion of for-profit care
  • The ability of healthcare consumers to get "real-time" information on providers and the quality of care
  • The "graying" of the population as more of us reach retirement age. This will lead to the need for more healthcare services 
  • The continuing movement of care from acute, in-patient to ambulatory settings
  • The expansion of primary care services and the need for more Advanced Practice Nurses to provide this care

David offered a number of strategies to ensure that healthcare workers and patients play an important role in these changes.

After David's keynote, HPAE members attended a variety of workshops in the morning and afternoon, each of which explored a particular set of challenges facing healthcare professionals. The workshops were grouped into three areas:

Personal Health and Wellness:

Click Here for Information and Photos Regarding the Workshops on Personal Health and Wellness

Proactive Union Strategies:

Click Here for Information and Photos Regarding the Workshops on Proactive Union Strategies

Clinical and Professional Issues:

Click Here for Information and Photos Regarding the Workshops on Clinical and Professional Issues