Healthcare hotspots: creating career pathways for refugees

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Victor Cunningham
5 years ago
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2 Healthcare hotspots: creating career pathways for refugees

3 The healthcare sector: Professionals jobs with good pay Source:

4 Job market analysis: Opportunities for refugees 1. What backgrounds do your clients have? Healthcare. Many refugees have received training in healthcare fields back home. 2. Which professional backgrounds are in demand? Healthcare. Nearly 1 million nurses will be needed in health care facilities across the country by the year How successful have immigrant medical professionals been in this sector? Successful. In 2005, 15% of all U.S. healthcare workers were foreign born.

5 Immigrant healthcare workers are a significant part of workforce Other health-care support Nursing, psychiatric, and home health aides Health-care technologists and technicians Health diagnosing and treating practitioners, all other Registered nurses Physicians and surgeons Total Source: Migration Policy Institute Share of foreign born (%) Share of native (%)

6 Healthcare jobs are usually in metro areas, where refugees live Distribution of healthcare jobs 3.6% 21.1% 75.3% Source: Migration Policy Institute

Hiring refugee professionals may be easier than cultural competency training Lia Lee was born in 1981 to a family of recent Hmong immigrants, and soon developed symptoms of epilepsy.

7 Hiring refugee professionals may be easier than cultural competency training Lia Lee was born in 1981 to a family of recent Hmong immigrants, and soon developed symptoms of epilepsy. By 1988 she was living at home but was brain dead after a tragic cycle of misunderstanding, overmedication, and culture clash. Anne Fadiman (1998), The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures What the doctors viewed as clinical efficiency the Hmong viewed as frosty arrogance.

8 Refugee professionals selling points They bridge the gap for cultural competency in the healthcare fields. They are highly motivated, and have high retention rates. They bring unique perspectives to the worksite. They can relate to foreign-born patients. They are multi-lingual.

9 What is recertification? Recovery of professional employment status enjoyed in country of birth or country of first asylum. Increased income Improved self-respect and mental health Improved family stability Community stability stemming from increased income invested in homes Recovering hope

10 Who are good candidates for recertification? The candidate most likely to suceed will: have good English. have made a good adjustment to living in the U.S. enjoy the idea of further study. keep all appointments promptly and stay in close touch with job counselor. have all documents and certificates.

11 ORR has published detailed fact sheets on re-licensing Fact sheets on refugee professional relicensing are available from The Employment & Training Administration (ETA) and the Health and Human Services/Office of Refuge Resettlement (ORR).

12 Case study #1 Offering tuition assistance

13 Integrating Foreign-Trained Healthcare Professionals for Self-Sufficiency Interview with Wilhelmina Holder, executive director of Women s Initiative for Self-Empowerment (WISE) & The African and American Friendship Association for Cooperation and Development.

14 Why should you have to start over from scratch? We re saying that why should you have to start over from scratch? Our program is taking people from where they are and helping them connect with the training they need to take them to the licensure board examinations, so that they can practice in the area. We took the next step. We don t want anyone to get trapped as nursing assistants. Because you slow the process. We should go straight ahead.

15 Medical licensing process for foreign-trained professionals

16 Getting recertified as a medical professional is costly Doctors will need an estimated $20,000 in student loans per year. If you get into residency, the first year you are already making $45,000. You can start paying back. When you become a doctor, you can easily work on a loan-forgiveness program where there s a need. There s a scarcity of doctors in many communities.

Skilled Minnesota refugees are regulated to entry-level jobs A pilot study shows newly arrived African immigrants come to Minnesota with a broad range of medical education and training.

17 Skilled Minnesota refugees are regulated to entry-level jobs A pilot study shows newly arrived African immigrants come to Minnesota with a broad range of medical education and training. In spite of their professional qualifications, 80% are relegated to entry-level medical positions as nursing aides or, worse, to unskilled jobs as taxi drivers or parking lot attendants simply because they lack the necessary licensing required for professional medical employment.

More pilot study findings: What career barriers exist? Lack of access to required transcripts from foreign medical colleges (U-Baghdad was bombed).

18 More pilot study findings: What career barriers exist? Lack of access to required transcripts from foreign medical colleges (U-Baghdad was bombed). Lack of an organized system for understanding the complicated licensure process in the U.S. High costs associated with the licensure process. Language barriers that prevent applicants from understanding information. Need for coaching, advocacy, family and peer support.

Increased lobbying resulted in successful fundraising In 2006, the Minnesota Legislature approved a one-time $450,000 appropriation from the state s Workforce Development Fund to fund a pilot project

19 Increased lobbying resulted in successful fundraising In 2006, the Minnesota Legislature approved a one-time $450,000 appropriation from the state s Workforce Development Fund to fund a pilot project that would encourage the licensure of foreign-trained physicians, nurses, dentists, pharmacists, veterinarians, and other allied health care professionals. In October 2007, AAFACD, in collaboration with the Women s Initiative for Self-Empowerment, received a grant of $168,370 per year for three years from the Ethnic Community Self-Help grant program of ORR

20 Program design 1. Tuition assistance Program provides $800 to nurses who apply for licensure exams. Program provides $1,500 to physicians who apply for licensure exams.

21 Program design 2. Mentorship Licensed doctors provide phone assistance and give advise how to prepare for the interviewing process. Partnering MDs review the personal statements clients have to include in their residency program application.

22 Minnesota recertification success stories 99 participants were enrolled at Kaplan Medical for test preparation. 12 physicians completed their examinations. 9 doctors secured residencies. 7 doctors and seven nurses were scheduled to sit for their examinations before the end of calendar year 2007.

23 Minnesota recertification success stories A hospital hired a doctor who had originally been trained in Somalia. When news broke in the Somali refugee community, many Somali refugees switched providers to become patients with this doctor. Due to the increased demand, the healthcare provider hired several additional Somali doctors.

24 Career laddering exercise Career laddering for refugees/asylees is defined as the development of a career track with multiple steps towards an agreed upon career goal. Based on the following background, discuss this client s (Esther s) career plan. What career options would you recommend? Ukrainian Refugee Resettled in Jacksonville Unmarried 30 years old Dentist Low level of English Career Goal: Dentist

25 Specialized ESL training The Welcome Back Initiative Based in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston Interview with Jose Ramon Fernandez-Pena, Director of the Welcome Back Initiative Director

26 Welcome Back director says: We are very client-centered. We re painfully aware of the fact that every case is different, even if it s the same country. 98% of the time it s life that gets in the way. It s not their command of the language, it s not their level of training. It s the responsibilities they have. With their family here, with their family abroad, with their housing situation. With two jobs that they re juggling, those are the obstacles. Interview with Jose Ramon Fernandez-Pena, Director of the Welcome Back Initiative Director

27 Program design 1. Specialized ESL training Jose Ramon Fernandez-Pena: The non-native speakers were terribly frustrated with the existing ESL offerings. You learn to say, Hi, my name is Bob, can I have soup, please. So we created an accelerated health-focused ESL curriculum, which is completely contextualized in the health setting and is focused on oral communication.the written aspect is focused on writing charts and notes, electronic and paper. When participants come out of our classes, they can say, Hello, Mr. Smith, where does it hurt? They may not be able to discuss a book with you, or talk politics, but they can certainly write, Patient refers pain on lower-left quadrant. ESL 20 is deeply rooted in understanding the concept of health disparities, and differences in and within cultures. Communicating with patients, supervisor, co-workers, and conflict resolution.

28 Program design 2. Peer support The Welcome Back Center has developed group workshops and activities, licensing exam study groups, and general information meetings to serve as peer support groups by profession.

Program design 3. Intensive counseling Coping With Test-Taking Anxiety: University of St. Thomas. Be sure to review the Test Prep & Test Taking section of this website, at: http://www.

29 Program design 3. Intensive counseling Coping With Test-Taking Anxiety: University of St. Thomas. Be sure to review the Test Prep & Test Taking section of this website, at: General exam stress-busting tips. General Study and Test-Taking Suggestions: skills/index.html

Welcome Back - San Francisco success stories 1,010 active participants 236 passed licensing exams. 134 clients obtained their licenses in their original profession.

30 Welcome Back - San Francisco success stories 1,010 active participants 236 passed licensing exams. 134 clients obtained their licenses in their original profession. 57 obtained an alternative healthcare career or license. 288 obtained employment in the U.S. health sector for the first time. 28 were accepted into medical residencies.

31 WBI offers career laddering for other medical professions Dietitian Occupational therapists Social workers Psychologists Physical therapists Speech pathologists Clinical laboratory profession Pharmacists Licensing Overview Flow Charts Detailed Licensing Information

32 Recertification programs for Foreign-trained professionals Welcome Back Center Jose Ramon Fernandez-Pena Welcome Back Initiative Director San Francisco / Los Angeles / San Diego Phone: jrfp@sfsu.edu Upwardly Global San Francisco Office Christina Fialho Executive Assistant 582 Market St., Suite 1207 San Francisco, CA Phone: Christina@upwardlyglobal.org

33 Recertification programs for Foreign-trained professionals New Americans in Nursing Program Florida International University (aka Foreign-Educated Physicians Nursing Program) Mairelys de la Guardia FIU School of Nursing SW 8th St., Rm. 492 Miami, FL Phone: ; South Florida Workforce Refugee Career Laddering Program Arlene Diaz 7300 Corporate Center Dr. Suite 500 Miami, FL Phone: x adiaz@southfloridaworkforce.com

34 Recertification programs for Foreign-trained professionals Integrating Foreign-Trained Healthcare Professionals for Self- Sufficiency Wilhelmina Holder, Executive Director Women's Initiative for Self Empowerment (WISE), Inc. Hamline Park Plaza 570 Asbury St, Suite 110 Saint Paul, MN Tel: (651) Fax: (651) Medical Careers for New Americans Program International Institute of MN 1694 Como Ave. St. Paul, MN Phone: x info@iimn.org

35 Recertification programs for Foreign-trained professionals Rochester Healthcare Academy Workforce Development, Inc. (WIB) Melissa Lewis th Ave. NW, Suite 114 Rochester, MN Phone: Nursing Career Academy Links Intercultural Mutual Assistance Association Avni Patel 2500 Valleyhigh Dr. Rochester, MN Phone: x avni.patel@imaa.net

36 Recertification programs for Foreign-trained professionals Foreign-Trained Professionals Program 1199 SEIU Training & Employment Funds Manhattan Office 330 West 42nd St. 2nd Fl. New York, NY Phone: spx Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians Amanda Bergson-Shilcock 1617 John F. Kennedy Blvd. 13th Fl. Philadelphia, PA Phone:

37 Recertification programs for Foreign-trained professionals Boston Welcome Back Center Boston-Bunker Hill Community College Daniel Lam Executive Director 250 New Rutherford Ave. Rm. B206B Boston, MA Phone: ICAN

38 Daniel Sturm Consultant & Managing Editor RefugeeWorks 700 Light Street Baltimore, Maryland Phone 410/ Fax: 410/ Web: To sign up for the RefugeeWorks E-Newsletter, visit your subscription page at:

Recertification for Refugees with Professional Backgrounds

Recertification for Refugees with Professional Backgrounds Many clients are overqualified, but underemployed How many Iraqi refugees are collegeeducated? 63% What types of jobs have Iraqi clients applied