November 19, 2002 –Consumer & Industry Services Director Noelle A. Clark today announced that a $300,000 grant to establish and operate the Michigan Center for Nursing has been awarded to the Michigan Health Council.

The role of the Michigan Center for Nursing will be to facilitate activities designed to ensure that an adequate and ongoing nursing workforce is available to meet the health care needs of the citizens of the State of Michigan. The grant will be allocated over a period of three years: $150,000 for FY 2003, $100,000 for FY 2004, and $50,000 for FY2005.

“We are thrilled to be working with the Michigan Health Council on this critical component to our state’s overall effort to address the nursing shortage in Michigan,” said Clark.  “The Michigan Health Council is the perfect choice for this vital project since it has more than 50 years of demonstrated ability and health care policy expertise as well as a broad base of support across all facets of the health care and educational systems in Michigan.”

The purpose of the Michigan Center for Nursing is to:

• Provide a central forum in Michigan for exploring and addressing the changing expectations, roles and responsibilities of nurses, their employers, their clients and the public.

• Establish a central resource for the collection and analysis of nursing workforce data.

• Develop a forecasting model that will allow Michigan-specific assessments of future nursing supply and demand.

• Communicate nursing workforce data to all stakeholders for use in the development and implementation of strategies for addressing recruitment, retention and nursing education.

• Strengthen nursing education to meet the changing needs of Michigan’s nursing workforce and population.

"We are excited to be given the opportunity to build the infrastructure for action and communication that will sustain open dialogue and problem solving around nursing issues for years to come," said Anne Rosewarne, Michigan Health Council President.

In addition to its depth of experience and track record of expertise on health care issues in Michigan, the MHC proposal was strengthened by the existing close relationship MHC has with the North Carolina Center for Nursing which is a nationally recognized organization focusing on nursing workforce issues similar to those faced in Michigan.

"Our goal is for the Michigan Center for Nursing to provide a central resource for all nursing workforce data, dealing with recruitment and retention issues, and strengthening nursing education," said Carol Garlinghouse, MSN, RN, Director of the Michigan Health Council Nurse ICON  program.

The Michigan Health Council will work in partnership with Public Sector Consultants, which originally recommended the creation of a Center for Nursing in a study it conducted on behalf of the Michigan Department of Consumer & Industry Services. The July 2001 report “Study of the Current and Future Needs of the Professional Nursing Workforce in Michigan,” is viewable on the Internet at: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/cis_fhs_nursrpt_34456_7.pdf

"We are looking forward to partnering with the Michigan Health Council to collect and consolidate the data needed to develop and implement strategies that will help strengthen the nursing workforce in Michigan,” said Peter Pratt, Vice President for Health Policy, Public Sector Consultants.

Read more Michigan Department of Consumer & Industry Services press releases.