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LBJ allocates a chunk of ARPA funding to acquiring and maintaining a “robust workforce”

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A public comment period on LBJ proposals will be scheduled
reporters@samoanews.com

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — LBJ Medical Center has allocated $50 million of its $300 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act for recruitment, retention and retraining of staff at LBJ and the proposed new 40-bed facility in Tafuna.

“Funding to cover these costs is essential to attracting and retaining qualified staff to make the healthcare system in American Samoa viable and effective,” LBJ said in its ARPA funding documents released by the ASG ARPA Oversight Office. These activities will address major hurdles associated with recruiting staff, retaining staff, staff benefits, continuing education/training, housing, and salaries.”

LBJ’s scope of work for the staffing proposal is three-fold, with the first one comprising recruitment of needed healthcare professionals to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, public health disasters and access to healthcare for the community.

The second prong, according to the documents, is that there is a need to retain the current workforce by offering premium pay for the frontline healthcare workers.

The last and final one is that the ARPA funding will be used to provide training for providers, and all employees to decrease the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. “This will help bring the pandemic under control,” it says.   “A robust workforce is essential for the success of the healthcare system.”

According to LBJ documents, this proposal strives to provide immediate relief to address the personnel/staffing shortages arising from the COVID-19 public health emergency and pandemic by increasing hospital personnel staff for both the LBJ site in Fagaalu and the proposed new hospital in Tafuna.

Furthermore, expanding programs to support the recruitment of U.S. medical licensed providers and U.S. licensed ancillary/clinical and support staff, and the retention of current workforce, as well as re-training of the workforce that provides COVID-19 related services and acute healthcare services.

“In numerous studies and systemic reviews, it has been concluded that better hospital staffing is associated with fewer patient complications, lower mortality rates, favorable patient outcomes, and shorter days for admitted patients and fewer readmissions,” it says.

LBJ declared that its ARPA funding will be used for recruitment of U.S. licensed providers, ancillary/clinical support staff, and the retention and retraining of current U.S. licensed health care and essential support staff for the acute care facilities at LBJ.

“This is a critical step to ensure that the medical center will have the necessary staff to continue essential healthcare work,” LBJ explained. “Staffing is needed to have a safe amount of front line workers to provide treatment and safe, quality care for all who access the LBJ facilities [and] is not optional.”

Among the key objective of the recruiting plan is to enhance, expand, and strengthen the workforce capacity of LBJ; support compliance of the Conditions of Participation with the Center of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for LBJ; expand eligibility and increase access to care for all Medicaid/Medicare beneficiaries in American Samoa.

Another objective is to provide Telehealth capability for remote patient monitoring during the COVID surge. LBJ said that based on previous and multiple telehealth projects and activities, LBJ has had successful collaboration with the University of Hawaii Telecommunications and Social Informatics (UH TASI) Research Program in establishing telehealth programs.

And LBJ will seek recommendations or requests to engage in a partnership for this project with the hospital’s capability in offering telehealth services during the Covid-19 pandemic and public health emergencies.

LBJ’s document also details the recruitment under the proposed plan, for four-main areas: medical staff, patient care nursing staff, ancillary & clinical support staff and hospital support staff.

As required under the ARPA law, LBJ in the near future will hold a public comment period on this proposal. And LBJ will announce it when the date is firmed up.

As previously reported by Samoa News of the $300 million allocated under ARPA funds, $200 is for the proposed 40-bed hospital in Tafuna (see Samoa News edition on Apr. 26 for details);  $50 million for the LBJ expansion projects (see Samoa News May 3 for details); and another $50 million for recruitment of personnel.

Full details of the LBJ 87-page funding proposed through ARPA funds is found online at the Oversight Office (https://www.americansamoa.gov/arpa).