CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwire - Oct 10, 2012) -  The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB), National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP), and National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) have jointly issued a statement that supports state and federal health care regulators, agencies and other key stakeholders in the collective effort to compile an evidence-based, comprehensive analysis of the nation's health care workforce. 

As organizations representing the health care professional licensing and regulatory boards in the U.S., FSMB, NABP and NCSBN recognize the inherent value of collecting workforce data in order to better ensure the quality and safety of the nation's health care system.

"The FSMB and its member boards have undertaken several initiatives to provide better information to workforce policymakers and physician education and training programs as they seek to address the growing challenge of access to health care," said Humayun Chaudhry, DO, President and CEO of the FSMB. "These include the first-ever comprehensive national census of actively licensed physicians in the U.S., and the collection of essential physician demographic and practice characteristics that will help us better understand where physicians are working and what is the focus of their practices."

Over the next decade, the U.S. faces health care workforce challenges that have the potential to impact patient access to quality and affordable care. It is imperative that strategies that not only document, but also address, future challenges and the maldistribution of the health care workforce are developed and implemented now.

"The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy is working closely with the Pharmacy Workforce Center (PWC) to establish a uniform and ongoing system of data collection and analysis. The introduction of NABP's Continuing Pharmacy Education (CPE) Monitor will provide real time workforce data on all pharmacists and technicians licensed or registered by U.S. Boards of Pharmacy," noted NABP Executive Director Carmen Catizone.

The member licensing boards of FSMB, NABP and NCSBN, which regulate a combined five million health care practitioners, stand ready and willing to assist state and federal health officials with understanding and addressing the nation's health care workforce because it is their firm conviction that this data will be instrumental in ensuring their ability to continue to meet the growing needs of patients across the nation. 

"Because of the vital nature of this data, NCSBN is working with its member boards to become the national repository for data about the supply of nurses in the U.S. NCSBN aims to create a standardized national public use database for federal, state and local nursing workforce planning efforts," commented Kathy Apple, MS, RN, FAAN, NCSBN CEO.

About the organizations
The Federation of State Medical Boards, www.fsmb.org, is a non-profit organization representing all medical boards within the United States and its territories that license and discipline allopathic and osteopathic physicians and, in some jurisdictions, other health care professionals. It assists these state and territorial medical boards as they go about their mandate of protecting the public's health, safety and welfare. The FSMB leads by promoting excellence in medical practice, licensure, and regulation.

The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, www.nabp.net, is an impartial professional organization that supports the state boards of pharmacy in creating uniform regulations to protect public health. Founded in 1904, the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) is the impartial professional organization that supports the state boards of pharmacy in protecting public health. NABP aims to ensure the public's health and safety through its pharmacist license transfer and pharmacist competence assessment programs, as well as through its VIPPS, Vet-VIPPS, VAWD, and DMEPOS accreditation programs.

The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), www.ncsbn.org, is a not-for-profit organization whose members include the boards of nursing in the 50 states, the District of Columbia and four U.S. territories -- American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands and the Virgin Islands. There are also 12 associate members. Mission: NCSBN provides education, service and research through collaborative leadership to promote evidence-based regulatory excellence for patient safety and public protection.