Health Care Industry Skill Panels

The Workforce Development Council (“WDC”), in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, the University of Hawaii - Center for Career and Technical Education, and the University of Hawaii Community College System are sponsoring the state’s first healthcare industry skill panels. The Panels have formally met twice in the last two months.

Industry skill panels are private/public partnerships that work to ensure employees in key industries have the skills needed to keep Hawaii competitive. Industry-led, the panels are alliances that include business leaders, labor representatives and educators serving a specific industry. The panels in Hawaii will be funded by the DLIR’s WDC and the UH-CTE to develop strategies to provide:

1. Workers with better skills, jobs and career opportunities

2. Employers with more efficiency, less turnover and higher profits

3. Educators with the type of skills students need in order to succeed in that specific industry

4. Public agencies with data on employers' skill needs.

Each Panel provides various perspectives on addressing current and future skill requirements that are in demand.

The Hawaii industry skill panels are focusing on aligning training and funding to meet current employer labor needs for the healthcare industry. The focus of the industry skill panels are:

1. Connect Hawaii residents to training, funding, and jobs to meet immediate healthcare industry labor needs in the next 12 to 18 month;

2. Develop an action plan to meet long term labor needs for the Healthcare industry; and

3. Bridge the communication gap between employers and the University of Hawaii.

INDUSTRY SKILL PANELS - A PROVEN TACTIC (PRESENTATION)

HEALTHCARE INDUSTRY SKILL PANEL REPORT SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES

The following are the five healthcare industry sectors that the panels have focussed on:

1. HealthCare Industry Skill Panel Executive Committee

2. Nursing (Panel Members)

3. Primary Care (Panel Members)

4. Technical Disciplines (Panel Members)

5. Long-Term Care (Panel Members)

6. Work Readiness (Panel Members)