New Online Library Focuses on Health Care Workforce

Family physicians interested in keeping abreast of health care workforce changes and health personnel shortages have a new, centralized online library they can consult: the Health Workforce Information Center, or HWIC.

The site, which is funded by the Bureau of Health Professions in HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration and operated by the Center for Rural Health at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences in Grand Forks, aims to deliver information that assists health professionals, educators, researchers and policymakers in developing strategies to meet future workforce demands.

The online center helps users stay up-to-date on health workforce programs and funding sources; workforce data, research and policy; educational opportunities and models; and workforce-related news and events.

The site's content is organized into six topic areas:

Visitors to the site can access a variety of publications and other resources on health workforce issues. The site also offers free assistance from information specialists who are on hand to search databases on workforce topics and funding resources, furnish relevant publications, and connect users to workforce experts and federal programs.