Alaska’s SHARP Program
SHARP Council Member Statement
AK Native Health Board
Kimberley Strong
Voting Member
kstrong@searhc.org
Healthcare Workforce Overall
Hospitals and Clinics, esp. Tribal Health
Physician, Pharmacist, Psychologist, LCSW, PT, LMFT, LPC, PA,
NP, RN, Midwife, Dentist, RDH
135
AISU, ANTHC, ASNA, BBAHC, EAT, KIC, NSHC, Copper River, SCF,
SEARHC, SVT, TCC, YKHC
Anchorage, Gulf Coast, Interior, Mat-Su, Northern, Southeast,
Southwest & Statewide
Organization
Representative
Membership
Email Address
Occupation Categories
Practice Setting Types
Experience Thus Far
Occupations To-Date
Practitioner Contracts #:
Practice Sites: Examples
Regions Thus Far
Testimony
SHARP’s Success To-Date
Need for SHARP-3
We believe that the SHARP Program, in its current state, is an extremely
effective incentive program to entice providers and clinical staff to join and stay
with our organization. It has proven to be an effective marketing tool on the
recruiting side as it is an additional benefit that Health Care Facilities can
promote as part of the recruitment package.
Alaska has a persistent and significant healthcare worker shortage and many
rural and remote communities struggle to maintain any semblance of regular
healthcare. Healthcare professionals are incurring large amounts of student loan
debt and the competition among employers to find and employ qualified
professionals throughout the US is extremely difficult. Often times prospective
professionals are lured elsewhere for financial reasons. In order to become
more competitive, Alaska must develop multiple pathways to recruit and retain a
solid, reliable, and committed workforce in the public and private sectors.
The Sharp III program aims to lay the groundwork for creating pathways to
successful placement of health care providers in Alaska