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Partners

Addressing Kentucky’s hospital workforce crisis is a team effort. Meet our partner organizations!

Partners

KHA works closely with the Kentucky Board of Nursing to deliver actionable workforce information, regulatory guidance, and training that strengthens clinical education capacity. This includes sharing KBN resources on scope of practice, advisory opinions, and nursing laws, as well as statewide nursing pipeline data that helps hospitals plan for recruitment, retention, and clinical placements.

A major collaboration point is workforce data. KHA links to KBN’s Nursing Workforce Projection Model and commissioned a separate 2022–2035 projections report to quantify future nursing supply and demand for Kentucky hospitals.

KHA and KBN also launched a Clinical Instructor and Preceptor Program to strengthen bedside teaching and clinical instruction. Member hospitals can host sessions for nursing staff and educators. Contact JP Hamm or Joy Pennington to learn more and schedule.

KHA partnered with the Kentucky Chamber Foundation’s Workforce Center to create a Hospital Talent Pipeline Management (TPM®) program designed for hospitals. TPM® applies a supply-chain approach to workforce: hospitals define high-need roles, identify where candidates come from, and collaborate with education and community partners to increase the supply of prepared talent.

KHA has funded four regional TPM managers who convene hospitals and partners, align data, and launch collaboratives focused on practical pipeline solutions. Regional collaboratives are active across North Central, Western, Eastern, and South Central Kentucky.

KHA is a member of the leadership team for SWATT, a coalition of statewide organizations committed to improving coordination and delivery of workforce development services to Kentucky employers. SWATT is designing a unified, data-informed approach with shared metrics—piloting first in manufacturing and health care—to improve responsiveness and results across the workforce system.

KHA works closely with the Council on Postsecondary Education to strengthen the postsecondary pipeline into hospital careers, including representation on CPE’s Healthcare Workforce Investment Fund (HWIF) Steering Committee. CPE also convenes the Kentucky Healthcare Workforce Collaborative, aligning state leaders, campus leadership, and health care stakeholders around funding, policy, and program expansion.

CPE’s data tools—including the Kentucky Academic Program Inventory—help hospitals and partners identify where programs exist and where there are gaps or opportunities for new clinical partnerships.

Kentucky AHEC helps build the health workforce pipeline by introducing students to health careers, supporting learners through training, and encouraging providers to practice in rural and medically underserved communities.

For hospitals, AHEC is a practical partner for community outreach and career exposure, connecting students and health professions learners to community-based training sites—often in rural and medically underserved areas—while reducing the coordination burden that can slow clinical placements. Regional AHEC staff can help hospitals navigate placement logistics (including problem-solving supports and, in some cases, travel/lodging assistance pathways), making mentoring and precepting a real recruitment strategy by giving learners direct exposure to hospital teams, workflows, and communities.

KDE’s CTE system is a core upstream pipeline for hospitals. The Health Science pathways help students build foundational clinical and employability skills, explore health careers early, and in many cases begin earning industry-recognized credentials while still in high school. CTE also gives hospitals a structured way to shape “job-ready” expectations by providing input on local workforce needs, skills, and professional behaviors through advisory committees. Hospitals can engage through guest speaking, facility tours, job shadowing, internships/co-ops, and other work-based learning opportunities that help students (and families) understand hospital careers and create a smoother transition into postsecondary programs and entry-level roles.

Kentucky HOSA develops future health professionals through leadership development, technical skill-building, and competitive events aligned with health career pathways. For hospitals, HOSA is a direct connection to motivated students who are already investing time in health-career preparation and professionalism. Hospitals can support HOSA by sponsoring events, serving as judges, offering mentors, and hosting site visits—activities that build early career interest while strengthening students’ understanding of real-world hospital roles, teamwork, and patient-centered culture. Engagement also supports your longer-term recruiting brand by keeping hospital careers visible and credible to students across the state.

KCTCS is one of Kentucky’s largest sources of job-ready health care talent, offering programs across nursing, allied health, and clinical fields. Hospital partnerships can include clinical placements, apprenticeship-style models, and co-designed curricula aligned to workforce shortages.  KHA meets with KCTCS each quarter to exchange updates and discuss education issues affecting our hospitals.

HealthForce Kentucky is a statewide workforce development partner launched in 2022 to help address Kentucky’s healthcare workforce shortage by expanding access to hands-on, high-fidelity simulation training and career exploration. Through mobile simulation units and its Innovation Center in Owensboro, HealthForce brings immersive training directly to communities and educators—often at a lower cost than purchasing and staffing simulation equipment—so instructors can focus on teaching while HealthForce provides expert simulationists to run the technology.  This creates a practical way to strengthen local pipelines and upskill teams through customized simulations (including EMS/prehospital training, OB/peds/neonatal scenarios, and career pathway “career trucks” for learners).

The Kentucky Workforce Innovation Board (KWIB) provides statewide strategy and oversight for Kentucky’s workforce system, helping set priorities that shape how training programs, funding, and services are aligned across regions and industries. For KHA member hospitals, KWIB matters because it influences the “plumbing” behind talent pipelines—regional workforce boards, Kentucky Career Center business services, work-based learning supports, and training investments that can be leveraged for hard-to-fill roles. Hospitals can engage by connecting with their local workforce board to explore sector partnerships, incumbent worker training, apprenticeship/work-based learning options, and other supports that strengthen recruitment and retention efforts.

The Department for Behavioral Health, Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities’ Workforce Innovation and Development (WID) Collaborative convenes partners to strengthen Kentucky’s behavioral health and intellectual/developmental disability (BH/IDD) workforce capacity. For KHA member hospitals—especially those providing behavioral health services—WID is a useful statewide forum to align on workforce challenges that directly affect patient access and continuity of care, including recruitment/retention barriers, training capacity, and cross-sector career pathways. WID’s work also supports shared learning across providers and partners by exploring, designing, implementing, and evaluating workforce practices that improve service delivery and support the health and wellbeing of Kentuckians.

The Kentucky Office of Rural Health (KORH), established in 1991, is a federal-state partnership housed at the University of Kentucky Center of Excellence in Rural Health. KORH supports rural health access by linking rural communities with local, state, and federal resources and working toward long-term solutions to rural health challenges.

For hospitals and rural providers, KORH can assist with program development, financial and operational improvement, and connecting to funding opportunities.

KYVALOR connects transitioning service members, veterans, and military spouses with Kentucky employers and accelerated career pathways that give credit for military education and experience. For hospitals, KYVALOR supports recruitment into high-need roles by helping veteran candidates translate military skills into civilian credentials and employment pathways.

RETAIN Kentucky (Retaining Employment and Talent After Injury/Illness Network) is a federally funded initiative exploring stay-at-work and return-to-work strategies so employees can remain productive after injury or illness. For hospitals, RETAIN supports workforce stability by improving return-to-work planning, accommodations, and coordination—reducing avoidable turnover.

SOAR is a regional, nonpartisan nonprofit championing projects, programs, and advocacy for the 54 ARC-mandated counties in Eastern Kentucky. For hospitals and workforce partners in the region, SOAR connects to initiatives supporting long-term talent development and retention, including broader community issues that affect workforce supply—housing, childcare, transportation, and economic growth.

AHA provides national workforce resources for hospital strategy, storytelling, and leadership awareness—including Workforce Perspectives videos (#WeAreHealthCare), practical tools, and an annual workforce scan summarizing employment trends. KHA’s workplace violence prevention resources also reference AHA materials on violence mitigation, making AHA a useful national resource for hospital leaders and safety teams.

See also: KHA Workplace Violence Prevention Resources

KHA has partnered with AVADE®, a Joint Commission-accredited workplace violence prevention training company, to support member hospitals’ workplace safety efforts. AVADE training focuses on awareness, prevention, and mitigation—preparing staff to recognize risk, de-escalate, and respond effectively to threatening or violent situations.

See also: KHA Workplace Violence Prevention Resources

KCCRT is a statewide team of trained volunteers that provides rapid, peer-informed mental health support after critical incidents, traumatic events, and disasters. Services include group debriefings and one-on-one Psychological First Aid (PFA).

For hospitals, KCCRT is a practical resource when staff or the community experience a high-impact event such as a mass casualty incident, workplace violence, or disaster. Response requests are available 24/7: 1-888-522-7228 | kccrt@ky.gov

See also: KHA Workplace Violence Prevention Resources