One in five adults experience mental illness in a given year, and mental health conditions are exacerbated among minority groups. For example, the rate of depression among black youth is 30% higher than the average for their age group. Multiracial US adults are more likely to experience mental illness than adults who identify as any single race. Lesbian, gay and bisexual adults are twice as likely as heterosexual adults to experience a mental illness, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

At least six states with high opioid abuse rates also have strong work restrictions that hinder nurse practitioners (NPs) in prescribing medication that can help treat the problem, according to a study by researchers at Healthforce Center and UCSF. 

Projections by Healthforce Center at UCSF demonstrate a balanced labor market of registered nurses (RNs) in California. “If there are shortages, they are regional, and they are for RNs with specific experience. We have plenty of new graduates now and projected,” said Healthforce Associate Director of Research Joanne Spetz.

Healthforce Center at UCSF faculty member Elizabeth Mertz recently presented at an American Institute of Dental Public Health Colloquium. Her talk, entitled Role of Oral Health Workforce in the Health Care Value Equation, focused on the current status of the oral health workforce and changes to dentistry from value-based payment models. 

She explores the following topics in her presentation, which can be viewed below:

Source: UCSF Nursing's Science of Caring

Source: California Health Care Foundation

We know that primary care is essential for good health, but access to primary care in California varies greatly, with large swaths of the state competing for attention from increasingly fewer doctors. The primary care shortage is complex, rooted in decisions that future doctors make long before they attend medical school, the cost of their education, where they choose to live, and the financial lure of specialty practice. First, a few facts:

By Joanne Spetz, PhD, Associate Director of Research, Healthforce Center at UCSF

Some regions of California face nursing shortages, according to new Healthforce research. Substantial shortages are projected for the San Francisco Bay Area, Central Valley, and Central Coast regions, while surpluses may emerge in the Sacramento and Los Angeles regions. This is the first time regional projections have been created since 2007.

Last week, California Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 2281 into law, which expands MLT scope of practice. The new law’s provisions were informed by Healthforce Center at UCSF research and recommendations. For two decades Healthforce faculty member Susan Chapman has been leading and conducting research on the medical lab workforce, which is in short supply. We spoke with Dr.

By Maile Richardson

Since 2015, the California Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA) has been testing the viability of asking paramedics to step outside of their traditional scope of practice. Known as Community Paramedicine (CP), or mobile integrated health (MIH-CP), this model of care aims to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of health care delivery by creating partnerships between existing paramedics and other health care providers in local settings.

By Lisel Blash, MPA

After losing his job in the corporate sector, Josh was homeless and in and out of jail for several years. “Until I had my diagnosis; I thought everyone heard voices,” he said. The realization that he had a mental illness made Josh take action. After seeking treatment, he volunteered for homeless shelters and soup kitchens because he “wanted to give back.”