HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — On Wednesday, Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero signed an executive order establishing Guam’s Health and Social Services Workforce Development Collaborative. EO 2023-10 comes on the heels of meetings with island doctors and health care professionals to address ongoing recruitment and retention challenges, the administration announced in a press release.
“Our people have complex health care needs, and the pandemic exposed the unique challenges and vulnerabilities our island faces developing our health care sector as global demand for health care providers grows,” said Leon Guerrero. “In an effort to address existing shortages and plan for the future, our administration has established the Health and Social Services Workforce Development Collaborative, consisting of various community and government stakeholders and subject-matter experts, to study and make recommendations regarding our government’s strategy to recruit and retain nurses, health care professionals and social work professionals to service the needs of our community and region.”
“We are engaged in a nationwide competition for a finite number of social work and health professionals. To bring these invaluable resources to Guam, we need a new host of strategies and recommendations that call on our best strengths, and this group will help us achieve that,” said Lt. Gov. Joshua Tenorio.
The Health and Social Services Workforce Development Collaborative will consist of representatives from the University of Guam, Guam Community College, the Guam Memorial Hospital Authority, the Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center, the Department of Public Health and Social Services, the Board of Nursing Examiners, the Department of Integrated Services for Individuals with Disabilities and the Department of Administration or their designees, Adelup said in the release.
Medical personnel head to their shift at Guam Memorial Hospital on Monday, July 10, 2023, in Tamuning.
